‘It’s Our Turn’: Gun-Safety Advocates Surf a ‘Seismic’ Surge into US Legislatures.

A new generation of youthful political leaders is gaining power across the United States by channeling their firsthand encounters with firearms tragedies to advocate for reforms they believe the country is demanding.

Their rise signifies a nearly decade-long shift. Gun violence prevention has moved from a third-rail issue seldom discussed on the stump to a central platform that politicians, mostly Democrats, are now running – and winning – on.

Widespread Fatigue Fuels the Change

This change is fueled in part by a collective exhaustion with firearms deaths, encompassing large-scale attacks – such as recent incidents at a Rhode Island university and a Sydney beach – as well as firearms suicides and community violence, which continue to tear apart countless families and communities.

“It’s been an issue that has directly touched me,” explained Justin Pearson. “There was something about a legislator and seeing a lack of action, while recalling the impact in my community, that pushed me to say this is an issue we must prioritize.”

Ironically, the day he was took office was also the deadliest shooting in the state’s history, when three children and three adults were murdered at a Nashville private school.

Expulsion and a National Spotlight

Shortly after, he and two other fellow legislators led a protest on the legislative chamber to call for stricter firearms laws. The lawmakers were expelled for their protest, an act that propelled them to widespread recognition. They eventually reclaimed their seats.

Subsequently, Pearson’s brother was lost to a firearm suicide. This was far from his only encounter with tragic death; just years before, his mentor and a old schoolmate were also shot and killed in Memphis.

Now, Pearson is running for a federal office by placing firearms safety at the heart of his agenda. He emphasizes how it affects the state’s young residents, for whom gunshot wounds are the primary killer.

From Activism to Candidacy

The rise of office-seekers focusing on gun violence is also a product of the expanding advocacy network across the country, which has evolved into a recruitment channel for new candidates.

• Maxwell Frost, the country’s first Generation Z US representative, started off as a activist with March for Our Lives.
• Lucy McBath, a Georgia representative, and Abigail Spanberger, a soon-to-be governor, were both volunteers with a grassroots safety organization before running for office.
• Cameron Kasky, a survivor who helped to organize student protests, has declared his own campaign for a House seat.

“I see myself as a piece of a bigger movement. It’s the driving force I got into politics,” noted Frost. “I was 15 when the Newtown tragedy happened and that’s what pushed me to get involved.”

From Third Rail to Talking Point

Today, calling out pro-gun groups like the NRA is common among Democrats. But less than 15 years ago, many moderate Democrats held high ratings from the NRA, and the topic of regulating guns was considered a political third rail.

“It was gradual and not linear,” said a prominent advocate. “We saw our volunteers running for office and thought it was logical that someone advocating for laws would want to become a lawmaker.”

Many point to the Sandy Hook Elementary tragedy and the subsequent failure in Washington to pass gun-safety policies as a turning point. This led once NRA-backed politicians to abandon their high ratings to call for limits on high-capacity magazines. Now, receiving a poor grade from the group is a point of pride.

“After Parkland, no Democratic members of Congress had an A rating and were proud about it. That’s a dramatic change,” the advocate continued. “It dispelled a lot of myths and fears about being proactive on this issue.”

From Grieving Parent to Candidate

The issue of firearms deaths has also mobilized first-time entrants to public service.

Shaundelle Brooks lost her son in a 2018 mass shooting in Nashville. Tragically, another son was wounded leaving a concert. After years of pleading at the statehouse with no response, she chose to run for office.

“Testifying for years and having them just ignoring me, showed me that I needed to do more than what I was doing,” she said.

“When people see you’re personally impacted, they feel that you’re more credible to talk about this. They know it’s not a partisan game for us,” she added.

‘It’s Our Turn’ to Lead

These personal experiences of tragedy connect advocates across the country, forming what victims and survivors describe as a “club no one wants to join.”

“We don’t have a group chat, but we all feel called in this moment to be a part of the healing,” Pearson said of his colleagues. “The world is full of seemingly unsolvable issues. We’ve given people decades to address them. And now, with our the people behind us, the moment is ours.”

He argues that addressing this crisis also requires focusing on common-ground problems like mental health access and housing security, which might find greater support even in Republican-led legislatures. This holistic approach shows that being focused on ending gun violence isn’t just about restrictions, but also about addressing the underlying conditions.

“We’re not one-dimensional politicians,” he emphasized. “We understand the intersectionality of the problems. It’s not just gun violence. It’s poverty, environmental issues, neglected neighborhoods – these are the places with the highest levels of violence. We need leaders who have experienced that pain.”

In the end, the candidate contends a lack of movement at the federal level on policies like extreme risk protection orders and waiting periods has real consequences.

“Due to this stagnation, people are dying,” he said. “This crisis isn’t going to be solved by doing what we’ve done in the past.”