The Colorado House Passed An Assault Weapons Ban

It is official: The Colorado House has passed an assault weapons ban as of this past Sunday. This is extremely historic, as it has not made it this far legislatively yet. Also, this is why I love Gen-Z—they are not afraid to push for the change that we want to see. They have grown up around school shootings and they are DONE. The tweet below is from one of the Colorado House Reps, Tim Hernandez, who was the main original sponsor alongside Rep Elizabeth Epps, who is also pictured. Really, truly, a big shoutout to them. Additionally, what an accomplishment for their legislative records!

The timing of this bill passing the Colorado House is notable, considering that the 25th anniversary of the Columbine High School shooting is this weekend.

Some other shootings in Colorado that involved these types of weapons include the Aurora movie theatre shooting, the Boulder King Soopers shooting, the Pulse Nightclub shooting, the Highlands Ranch High School shooting, and others.

Currently, there are 10 other states (CA, CT, DE, HI, IL, MA, MD, NJ, NY, and WA) that have passed an Assault Weapons Ban. Everytown for Gun Safety has compiled additional data regarding assault weapons.

It is possible that Colorado could become the 11th state to pass an assault weapons ban, but it will require us to pick up our phones.

This week, our state senators need to hear from us regarding this bill, especially if they are on the Judiciary Committee. (Unless your senator is Julie Gonzales, you can say thank you because she is already a sponsor of this bill!)

Here is a sample script:

“Hello Senator [LAST_NAME], My name is [YOUR_NAME] and I am your constituent in [YOUR_CITY]. I wanted to call and let you know that I would urge you to vote yes on House bill HB24-1292, also known as the Assault Weapons Ban, that is coming your way. Firearm violence is a priority for me as a voter and with primaries coming up, I will be paying attention to which of my representatives votes to pass meaningful firearm legislation”

Alright Colorado – let’s get this job done!