(The Center Square) – With new calls for gun control following the Highland Park parade shooting, a youth liberty organization is standing up for gun rights.
Seven people were killed and dozens injured at a Fourth of July parade by a suspect who legally purchased guns.
Young Americans for Liberty, a group that was vocal opponents of pandemic mandates on college campuses, is now voicing opposition to calls for gun control laws.
YAL spokesman Sean Themea said every time there is a horrible event like the one in Highland Park, there are calls for restrictions on Second Amendment rights.
“Politicians on the left and some even in the Republican party are swift to call for increased measures of gun control, and we proactively come out against that every time because gun control is the root of authoritarianism, and does nothing to stop these mass shootings,” Themea said.
A measure that is gaining Democratic support at the Illinois statehouse would ban the possession of certain types of guns, such as “assault weapons” and “large capacity ammunition feeding devices.”
“Illinois has some of the strictest gun control and red flag laws in the country, and unfortunately, it couldn’t stop this tragedy from happening either,” Themea said.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker was in Washington D.C. this week alongside President Joe Biden, gun control advocates and victims of gun violence to herald recently enacted federal gun legislation. The law includes a variety of measures, including increasing background checks for people under 21 looking to buy guns.
The governor is advocating banning certain types of semi-automatic weapons and said the focus should also be on decreasing poverty.
“For this current fiscal year is to put money into programs that serve Black and brown communities throughout Chicago. and in fact through the rest of the state, particularly communities where there’s been a high degree of violence,” Pritzker told CNN.
Themea said the conversation should instead be focused on another area.
“I think it’s high time that the conversation is about things that we might be able to do as a nation to stop these terrible tragedies from happening and that’s focusing on mental health,” said Themea.
