BLACKSBURG, VA. – The Virginia chapters of Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action, both part of Everytown for Gun Safety’s grassroots network, released the following statements ahead of the 18-year mark of the mass shooting at Virginia Tech where 32 people were shot and killed and 17 others were wounded. Two semi-automatic pistols, one of which was a Glock equipped with a high-capacity magazine, were used in the shooting that took place entirely on campus.
For two years in a row, Virginia lawmakers passed measures that would prohibit high capacity magazines which can make mass shootings much more deadly, and prohibit the carry of firearms on college campuses. These measures would be law today in Virginia, if not for Governor Glenn Youngkin vetoing these measures for years in a row.
“It was a cold, crisp, April morning, 18 years ago when our community was shattered, the safety and security of our world torn to shreds, and our campus left wounded and bleeding. Lax gun laws with loopholes big enough to jump through, and cracks in a broken system allowed for someone to access firearms who never should have been able to, and our communities will forever be changed,” said Caitlin Czeh, a volunteer with the Virginia chapter of Moms Demand Action and a survivor of the mass shooting at Virginia Tech. “While we can’t bring back the people who we lost, we can honor them and their memory, through action and service for a safer Virginia.”
“As a student in Virginia, no amount of lockdown drills or campus security could ever make me feel safe enough when semi-automatic guns can still end up in the wrong hands,” said Zoë Flynn, a volunteer leader with the Alexandria Community Students Demand Action chapter who will attend Virginia Tech in the fall. “We continue to advocate for stronger gun safety laws in honor of the students and teachers who were killed in the mass shooting at Virginia Tech, and for every survivor of gun violence since then. It’s not enough for us to just honor them with thoughts and prayers, we need to honor them with action.”
With the 2025 elections just over six months away, a safer future for Virginia is possible. Gun violence survivors and gun safety advocates with the Virginia chapters of Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action will be working towards that by fighting to elect a gun sense candidate to the Governor’s Mansion and to a majority in the House of Delegates.
In an average year, 1,200 people die by guns in Virginia and 1,624 are wounded. With a rate of 13.6 deaths per 100,000 people, Virginia has the 34th-highest rate of gun deaths in the US. Gun violence costs Virginia $14.2 billion each year, of which $288.3 million is paid by taxpayers. More information about gun violence in Virginia is available here.