FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
04/03/2023

Forward Party Statement on the Crisis of Gun Violence

For decades, the problem of gun violence has been festering in America. Today, it is the leading cause of death among our children. This sad statistic has been highlighted all last week as the nation mourns the tragedy in Nashville.

The vast majority of Americans want answers that address the many factors in this uniquely American problem. The hunger and opportunity for cross-partisan solutions are clear.

What we get instead are hyper-partisan bills, aimed not at addressing the many root causes of gun violence, but at garnering attention, attacking political opponents, and preventing compromise. That’s not leadership—that’s more of the same theatrical and unproductive politics that has caused a growing number of Americans to conclude that our government simply will never work for them. And they’re right—as it stands now, it won’t.

The Forward Party is building a new type of political party from the bottom up, putting power in the hands of the voters and local leaders to define solutions that will work in their communities.

In the wake of the violence at the Covenant School, Tennessee Forward Party State Lead Shannon Rasmussen said this from the steps of the state house:

“People of every cohort, every background, every race, and every political leaning are working together in Nashville to make their voices heard. Forward is leveraging our recent experience in the General Assembly and our proximity to the movement to educate people about how they can be involved. We’re working to find the representatives who want to solve problems — and to take note of those who don’t. We’re listening to the voices around us and celebrating the civic engagement that’s happening, because it’s the only thing that will change our broken system.”

Shannon is just one of our hundreds of state leads and tens of thousands of volunteers from across the nation who are out there every day working for a better future. The Forward Party is constructing the platform for the Americans who are sick of our current politics to raise their voices above the fray.

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