PHILADELPHIA, PA – Everytown for Gun Safety and its grassroots network, Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action, released the following statements in response to a shooting that occurred in West Philadelphia on Wednesday afternoon at an Eid al-Fitr event with hundreds of people present to celebrate the end of Ramadan. While details are still emerging, reports indicate that at least three people were shot and wounded after a shooting broke out between two groups, including a teenager who was reportedly armed. Multiple guns were seized from the scene and several people were also taken into custody.
“At what should have been a celebratory event, multiple people were shot and wounded and hundreds others forever impacted because someone had access to a gun,” said Mary Liz Jones, a volunteer with the Pennsylvania chapter of Moms Demand Action. “Every instance of gun violence in our community is devastating and our hearts are with those who were affected by today’s shooting. We know a safer future for our community is possible and we’ll continue fighting for that to become a reality across Philadelphia and all of Pennsylvania.”
“How many more celebrations have to be devastated by gun violence before we make a change?” said Reem Khalifa, a volunteer leader with Student Demand Action. “Eid is meant to be a day of joy and observance, but now for too many Philadelphians, it will now be intertwined with a tragic memory of gun violence. But my generation refuses to be defined by the daily toll of gun violence. We deserve better than this and we’ll continue to call for change until our demands are met with meaningful action.”
Pennsylvania ranks 17th in the country for the strength of its gun laws with several critical gun safety laws including enhanced background checks and provisions to keep guns out of the hands of domestic abusers. There are still missing many critical gun safety laws which have stalled in the Senate. These policies include a ban on ghost guns, which passed the House last week, as well as an extreme risk law and expanded background check requirement for all sales of firearms, both of which passed the House last year. During the budget address, Governor Shapiro and Lieutenant Governor Davis announced $100 million in funding to support gun violence prevention in the Commonwealth and renewed their calls for the Senate to take up these measures.
In an average year, 1,713 people die by guns in Pennsylvania and another 1,992 are wounded. Gun violence costs Pennsylvania $21.7 billion each year, of which $470.7 million is paid by taxpayers. More information about gun violence Pennsylvania is available here.
