Calls for gun reform laws grow after Michigan State University mass shooting

LANSING, Mich. (WILX) - The call for lawmakers to pass gun reform laws quickly grew after the Michigan State University mass shooting.

Related: MSU students ask lawmakers for more than thoughts and prayers

Survivors of school shootings in Michigan and nationwide are urging lawmakers to change gun laws, including Stoneman Douglas High School shooting survivor David Hogg. Several proposals were introduced last week, just days after Brian Fraser, Alexandria Verner and Arielle Anderson were killed and five others were injured during a mass shooting at Michigan State University.

Rather than returning to the classroom Monday, more than a thousand students sat in front of the Capitol in Lansing urging lawmakers to pass gun reform as quickly as possible.

“I’m tired of being at these things. I’m really tired of being here. I think all of us are,” said Hogg. “I was here only a couple months ago, in Lansing, literally only a couple hundred feet from here with students hat ended up going through the shooting at MSU.”

Republican leaders have expressed a preference for proposals focusing on mental health resources instead of gun reforms. However, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has said she would sign gun reform proposals into law if they pass the Democratic-controlled legislature.

“This is the second mass shooting that has directly affected my life,” said MSU student Zoe Haden. “No one should experience one, let alone two events of gun violence.”

Haden’s sister survived the Oxford High School shooting in 2021. She’s part of the MSU chapter of March for our Lives, which works to change gun laws across the country after the shooting in Parkland in 2018.

“We need to learn from the mistakes of the past so that future generations don’t have to be the next mass shooting generation,” Hogg said.

Last week, Senate Democrats introduced several proposals in three key areas: safe storage, background checks, and red flag laws. Many Republicans have spoken out against these proposals, with some expressing a desire to focus on mental health instead.

“We really have to help our kids in this area, especially after COVID,” said Rep. Kathy Schmaltz. “A lot of kids suffered and they really, really need to talk to people.”

Democrats said they plan to introduce more proposals aimed at reducing violence, including addressing mental health.

The first hearing on the gun reform proposals is expected on Thursday, and Governor Whitmer is expected to sign the proposals into law if they pass.

Read next:

Subscribe to our News 10 newsletter and receive the latest local news and weather straight to your email every morning.

Copyright 2023 WILX. All rights reserved.