WASHINGTON — Today, Everytown and Moms Demand Action issued the following statements on Rep. Jim Langevin’s (D-RI) announcement that he would not seek re-election.
“As a survivor of gun violence, when Rep. Langevin calls for common sense gun safety laws, people listen,” said John Feinblatt, president of Everytown for Gun Safety. “We thank Rep. Langevin for doing everything in his power to keep others safe from senseless shootings, and for his decades of public service to the people of Rhode Island.”
“Throughout his career in public service, Rep. Langevin has turned his own experience as a survivor of gun violence into leadership on gun safety,” said Shannon Watts, founder of Moms Demand Action. “He leaves a lasting legacy in the gun violence prevention movement and we’ll forever be grateful for his service.”
Rep. Langevin, a Moms Demand Action Gun Sense Candidate in 2020, has spent his career as a reliable ally to the gun safety movement. Earlier this Congress, he was an original cosponsor of the Federal Firearm Licensee Act to bring the laws governing federally licensed firearms dealers into the 21st Century. He has also supported H.R. 8, the Bipartisan Background Checks Act, and legislation to close the Charleston loophole. This past summer, he introduced the Keeping Gun Dealers Honest Act with Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA). Rep. Langevin also helped lead the charge on the VOCA Fix Act and attended President Joe Biden’s signing ceremony.
Rep. Langevin is one of a handful of gun violence survivors serving Congress. At the age of 16, he was injured while working with the Warwick Police Department in the Boy Scout Explorer program when a gun accidentally discharged and a bullet struck Langevin, leaving him paralyzed.
