The mass shooting that occurred in a Lafayette, Louisiana movie theater last week during a screening of the Amy Schumer comedy “Trainwreck” falls somewhat outside HitFix's purview — the story is not, after all, specifically about the film but rather the act of violence that was perpetrated. But Schumer, arguably the breakout star of the summer, is a newsworthy and notable subject on our site (we covered her tweet in the immediate aftermath of the tragedy), and the issue at hand should matter to anyone who can see themselves in Jillian Johnson and Mayci Breaux, the two women who lost their lives after sitting down in the seeming safety of their local movie theater on July 23.
This morning, Schumer's skyrocket to mega-fame was utilized in service of a cause that merits the attention of every moviegoer and every American who cares about the chilling regularity of public mass shootings in the 21st century — a push to enact sensible gun control laws that will help prevent a tragedy like this from happening again.
“We're here today to say enough is enough to mass shooting in our schools, on college campuses, our military bases and even in our movie theaters,” said Schumer at the top of her speech. “These shootings have gotta stop, I don't know how else to say it. Maybe the worst part about all this is that there is a common sense way to stop mass shootings. There are many ways.”
Schumer appeared alongside her cousin, New York Senator Charles (Chuck) Schumer, who is currently sponsoring a gun-control bill that would strengthen background checks for firearms by rewarding states that submit records on convicted felons, individuals suffering from mental illness and domestic abusers to the federal background check system, and penalizing states that don't. The bill also includes language that would restore proposed cuts to mental health care programs, among other measures.
“What Chuck said here, it deserves unanimous support,” Schumer continued, her voice breaking. “We never know why people choose to do these things but sadly we always find out how, how the shooter got their gun. It”s often something that should haven”t happened in the first place, and today”s push makes so much sense because it seeks to address the 'how.' We need a background check system without holes and fatal flaws. We need one with accurate information that protects us like a firewall. The critics scoff and say well, there”s no way to stop crazy people from doing crazy things but they”re wrong. There is a way to stop them. Preventing dangerous people from getting guns is very possible. We have common-sense solutions.”
Schumer should be applauded for walking the walk on this issue. Let's hope she continues to speak out, as promised in her speech: “These are my first public comments on the issue of gun violence, but I can promise you they will not be my last.”
Watch her full remarks below.