Condemning Gun Violence after Covenant School Shooting
March 31, 2023 |
Dear Friend, This week, as the country mourned yet another school shooting – this time in our state’s capital city, Nashville – I called for meaningful gun violence reforms. I also led the Tennessee Congressional Delegation in a moment of silence from the floor of the House of Representatives. I also monitored ethylene oxide exposure for residents of southwest Memphis, introduced a resolution to expel Russia from the United Nations Security Council, and announced a grant for training school counselors at the University of Memphis. Additionally, I applauded a major investment in local efforts to address homelessness, questioned expert witnesses at an Aviation Subcommittee hearing on emerging technologies, announced a cancer research grant for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, and offered a health tip for dealing with psychological trauma for children affected by events like the shooting Monday in Nashville. Keep reading and follow me on Twitter and Facebook to see what I am doing as it happens. Condemning Gun Violence after Covenant School Shooting Closely Monitoring Ethylene Oxide Exposure in Southwest Memphis Urging Removal of Russia from United Nations Security Council Announcing School Counselor Grant to University of Memphis Applauding $6.8 Million Investment in Local Homelessness Initiatives Reviewing Status of Emerging Technologies such as Drones at Aviation Hearing Announcing Childhood Cancer Grant to St. Jude Condemning Gun Violence after Covenant School Shooting The whole country is in mourning once again after a school shooting, this time the killing of three children and three adults at the Covenant School in Nashville. On Thursday, as Dean of the Tennessee Congressional Delegation, I led my colleagues in a moment of silence for Hallie Scruggs, Evelyn Dieckhaus and William Kinney, all 9 years old; Mike Hill, 61, a school custodian; Cynthia Peak, 61, a substitute teacher; and Katherine Koonce, 60, the head of the school; and for the entire Nashville community. It is extremely frustrating to again be engaged in this solemn ritual and to be reminded that there have been 376 school shootings since Columbine in 1999. Tennessee has particularly weak firearms regulations – especially pertaining to assault rifles like the ones used Monday – that help keep dangerous weapons out of the hands of the wrong people. I am disappointed to see that the Tennessee General Assembly is currently considering expanding what it is calling “Constitutional Carry” legislation that would not require firearms training or background checks, and would apply not just to pistols but to all firearms – the precisely wrong response to these tragedies. See my statement on the shooting here and my statement from the House floor here. Closely Monitoring Ethylene Oxide Exposure in Southwest Memphis My office has been carefully monitoring the situation involving residents’ exposure to ethylene oxide (EtO) from Sterilization Services of Tennessee (SST) in southwest Memphis. I was encouraged by information provided at a public meeting at Monumental Baptist Church on Tuesday evening at which Dr. Michelle Taylor, Director of the Shelby County Health Department, stated that SST is in compliance with all local, state, and federal air pollution regulations and presented the results of a study showing no increased cancer rates in the area nearest SST. Regardless of the findings, I hope the facility will take proactive steps to reduce EtO emissions in advance of any updated EPA regulations and before life-long exposure to emissions from the facility does increase cancer rates in the community. Urging Removal of Russia from United Nations Security Council On Thursday, I joined Congressman Joe Wilson (SC-02), Chair of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, on which I am the Ranking Member, in reintroducing a resolution calling for Russia to be expelled from the United Nations Security Council. See my release and the resolution here. Announcing School Counselor Grant to University of Memphis On Monday, I announced that the University of Memphis will receive a $398,850 grant from the U.S. Department of Education’s Mental Health Service Professionals Demonstration Program to recruit and retain a diverse cohort of future school counselors focused on “high need” students of the Memphis and Shelby County Schools. See that release here. Applauding $6.8 Million Investment in Local Homelessness Initiatives On Tuesday, I announced that homelessness programs in the Ninth District will receive $6,832,309 from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Continuum of Care Competition Awards Program. Recipients include Alliance Healthcare Services ($1,028,276), Alpha Omega Veterans Services ($480,857), Behavioral Health Initiatives – Phoenix Project ($100,452), Case Management Inc. ($522,451), Catholic Charities ($712,933), Community Alliance for the Homeless ($634,309), Door of Hope ($934,664), Friends for Life ($807,156), Love Doesn’t Hurt ($193,328), Metropolitan Inter-Faith Association (MIFA) ($51,441) and Promise Development Corporation ($1,366,442). See my release here. Reviewing Status of Emerging Technologies such as Drones at Aviation Hearing On Thursday, the Aviation Subcommittee, on which I serve as the Ranking Member, held a hearing on emergent technologies such as uncrewed aircraft systems (UAS) or drones as we continue our review and efforts to modernize Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) programs. See my opening statement where I commend work being done by the Memphis Airport and FedEx and questions to expert witnesses here. Announcing Childhood Cancer Grant to St. Jude Also Tuesday, I announced a National Cancer Institute grant to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital for the study of factors leading to improvements in childhood cancer survival. See my release here. Following this week’s traumatic events in Nashville, I am reminded of how such events affect children. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has several resources for children and their parents for use in addressing psychological trauma. Please consider:
“It takes a monster to kill children. But to watch monsters kill children again and again and do nothing isn’t just insanity — it’s inhumanity.” – Poet Amanda Gorman who spoke at President Biden’s inauguration As always, I remain. Steve Cohen |