This photo released on December 14, 2012 by the ABC television network shows Sandy Hook Elementary School shooter Adam Lanza at an unknown location in 2005. File picture: ABC/HO/AFP
On Wednesday, US President Joe Biden marked the tragic Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in which on this day exactly 10 years ago, on 14 December, 2012, in Newtown, Connecticut, 20-year-old Adam Lanza shot and killed 26 people, including 20 young children.
“Ten years ago today at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, our nation watched as the unthinkable happened. Twenty young children with their whole lives ahead of them. Six educators who gave their lives protecting their students. And countless survivors who still carry the wounds of that day.
“We should have societal guilt for taking too long to deal with this problem. We have a moral obligation to pass and enforce laws that can prevent these things from happening again. We owe it to the courageous, young survivors and to the families who lost part of their soul 10 years ago to turn their pain into purpose.”
A few months ago, Biden signed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act into law.
According to the US government, the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act was a law passed during the 117th US Congress. Lawmakers implemented several changes to the mental health system, school safety programmes, and gun safety laws.
“We’ve reined-in so-called ghost guns which have no serial numbers and are harder to trace. We’ve cracked down on gun trafficking and increased resources for violence prevention,” added Biden.
But hesays more must be done to end the violent scourge of gun violence in the US.
“I am determined to ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines like those used at Sandy Hook and countless other mass shootings in America. Enough is enough. Our obligation is clear.”
Biden said America must eliminate “these weapons” that have no purpose other than to kill people in large numbers, and said it is within the power of the American people to do this – for the sake of not only the lives of the innocents lost, but for the survivors who still hope.
“Jill and I are praying today for the Sandy Hook families and the innocent lives lost that day.”
As of December 14, 2022, there have been more than 628 mass shootings in America, according to the real-time Gun Violence Archive website.
IOL