As my daughter goes back to school on Aug. 28 as a junior at McLean High School, the Parkland School shooting is at the forefront of my mind. Fort Lauderdale, Fla. is my other hometown, and I knew friends who were impacted by this horrific event. Gun violence can happen anywhere and we shouldn’t accept this as our norm.
McLean High School, as well as many other schools that reside in District 10, is represented by Barbara Comstock. Let’s not forget she is ranked as one of the top ten politicians who happily accepted $137,232 in donations from the NRA. Comstock might be quiet these days about gun policy because constituents in Northern Virginia have shifted to favor more sensible gun control, but her record speaks loud and clear. Comstock has voted against universal background checks and limiting semi-automatic weapons and currently votes with Trump more than 97 percent of the time.
The uprising of student advocacy for adequate gun control in the aftermath of the Parkland shooting needs to continue nationwide. This November vote for Democrat Jennifer Wexton who doesn’t take money from the NRA and supports universal background checks and closing gun show loopholes. At least with Wexton in office, we might have a fighting chance to make gun violence rare again.
Kristin Battista-Frazee
McLean