PRESS RELEASE
AAPCHO Issues Statement on Deadly Uvalde School Shooting
Calls on lawmakers to take action to address gun violence as immediate threat to public health and safety
May 25, 2022
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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WASHINGTON—Today, the Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations (AAPCHO) issued the following statement in response to yesterday’s mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. The shooting happened on the heels of other recent deadly mass shootings at a grocery store in Buffalo and a church in Laguna Woods—and adds to the countless and preventable tragic loss of life due to gun violence across the country.
Jeffrey Caballero, executive director of AAPCHO, said:
“We mourn the 19 children and two adults killed in Uvalde, Texas yesterday—and we express our grief and anger at the inaction that has made this and too many other tragedies like this possible. Our hearts go out to the families and loved ones of those killed in Uvalde yesterday, of those killed in Buffalo and Laguna Woods less than two weeks ago, of those killed in Atlanta just over a year ago, and of those killed in other senseless acts of gun violence throughout the country. We pause to grieve with these families and with our communities to honor the memory of lives lost and we commit to turning our collective grief into collective action.
As advocates for the health rights of low-income and underserved people and families, we know gun violence is an immediate threat to public health and the safety of all communities. It is unacceptable that any community, disproportionately including communities of color, feel unsafe at schools, grocery stores, places of worship, or any public and private spaces where they are simply living their daily lives.
Gun violence is a public health crisis. Our elected leaders must recognize and treat it as such. We urge lawmakers to pass legislation to end gun violence and dismantle systemic drivers of violence and inequities.
We call for meaningful policy change to serve all communities regardless of their race, ethnicity, religion, country of origin, sex, gender, age, disability, or circumstance. Gun violence prevention is not partisan and hate has no place in our communities. We will continue to advocate for programs and policies that promote public health and safety for all. We are looking at the candidates who will be on our ballots in November and will know their position on gun violence prevention. The time for action has long passed. We stand ready to support lawmakers with the courage to act.”
About AAPCHO
AAPCHO is a national association of community health organizations dedicated to promoting advocacy, collaboration and leadership that improves the health status and access of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders in the United States, the U.S. territories, and Freely Associated States. For more information on AAPCHO, please visit www.aapcho.org.
Contact
Kristine Cecile Alarcon, MPH, (510) 671-5054, kalarcon@aapcho.org