Rep. Bob Morgan: What patriotism means to me three years after the Highland Park mass shooting
Three years ago, Highland Park — a proud, peaceful community I represent — was shattered by gunfire. A young man armed with an assault-style weapon rained bullets on families gathered to watch a parade. Children were shot. Parents died shielding their kids. That day changed my life. It also reaffirmed my mission: to protect our communities by banning the weapons of war that do not belong on our streets.
The Illinois assault weapons ban, which I led to final passage six months after the Highland Park mass shooting, was not easy, and it has not been without consequence. Since I introduced the most sweeping gun violence prevention legislation in Illinois history, I have received a number of death threats. They came through voicemails, anonymous emails, even in handwritten notes to my home. Some mention my family members. Each one is meant to terrorize — to silence not just me, but anyone who dares take action to end gun violence.
In this, I am not alone.
Just a few weeks ago, Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman was assassinated for being a public servant. Her husband, Mark, was also fatally shot. Minnesota state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, were also shot but are thankfully recovering from their wounds. I didn't know Melissa personally, but I knew of her strength. From the moment she became speaker of the Minnesota House, she made gun safety a moral and legislative priority. Her leadership helped advance lifesaving reforms.
We cannot ignore what's happening. In America today, political violence is not an anomaly; it is escalating. It is fueled by extremist rhetoric, easy access to firearms and a refusal by too many leaders to speak out. This violence is designed to intimidate public servants into inaction. And it's working in too many places.
But we have solutions — and we need the courage to act on them.
That's why, last year, I co-founded Legislators for Safer Communities (SAFER), a coalition of state lawmakers from all 50 states who are committed to advancing commonsense gun laws. We come from red states, blue states and everything in between, but we are united by a simple idea: No American should have to fear getting shot while shopping for groceries, going to school, sitting in a house of worship or attending a Fourth of July parade.
State by state, we are advancing policies proven to reduce gun violence: universal background checks, safe storage laws, domestic violence firearm restrictions, and, yes, limits on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. We are also pushing for stronger protections for public officials and election workers because a democracy in which people are afraid to serve is not a democracy at all.
In America, we don't win arguments with threats. We win them through organizing, dialogue and action. I helped pass the assault weapons ban in Illinois not because it was politically convenient, but because it was right — and because I never want another Fourth of July to end the way Highland Park's did.
So this Independence Day, I ask every American — regardless of party — to take a stand. Speak out against political violence. Support laws that protect your neighbors and your children. Hold your leaders accountable through elections. Demand that our nation treat gun violence in all forms as a crisis that requires immediate, sustained and courageous action.
This Fourth of July, I'll be celebrating freedom: the freedom to speak, vote, lead and live without fear. Melissa Hortman believed in that kind of freedom. So did the victims of Highland Park. And I still do, too.
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