U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla, D-California, hosted a virtual roundtable discussion Thursday with community leaders addressing gun violence across California.
The conversation follows the passage of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which President Joe Biden signed into law last month. The purpose of the discussion, Padilla said, was to recognize and celebrate the passage of the legislation and motivate further actions toward gun safety.
"We also know that much more needs to be done," Padilla said."We keep up the fight to ban assault weapons ... and to expand and strengthen background checks, not just for potential buyers until the age of 21, but for everybody." "Don't believe the people who say that gun control laws don't work," said Garen Wintemute with the Violence Prevention Research Program at University of California, Davis.He added that California is in the progress of awarding around $200 million to more than 80 communities around the state for evidence-based violence intervention programs.
"They navigate all aspects of their lives under this persistent threat from the systems, institutions and agencies responsible for their well-being, so young folks are always in a state of vigilance and hyper vigilance," Dhaliwal said.