Dallas’ acting mayor is asking the NRA to hold its annual convention in a different city following last week’s mass shooting at a Florida high school.
Dallas City Council Member Dwaine Caraway, who is serving as mayor pro tempore, has asked the National Rifle Association to hold their annual convention in a different city, while urging leaders to do more to end gun violence, the Daily Mail reports.
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“I am saying to the NRA, reconsider yourselves coming to Dallas. There will be marches and demonstrations should they come to Dallas and we, Dallas, will be the ones that have to bear the cost and the responsibility and to protect the citizens,” Caraway, who claims that he has guns in every room in his house, said during a news conference on Monday.
“It is a tough call when you ask the NRA to reconsider coming to Dallas, but it is putting all citizens first, and getting them to come to the table and elected officials to come to the table and to address this madness now,” he continued. “They talk about mental illness. Yes, mental illness is an issue, but it’s not just an issue that should only be associated with guns. At the end of the day, we need to connect the dots. The NRA needs to step up to the plate and show leadership.”
NRA spokesman Andrew Arulanandam responded to Caraway’s call by stating that the convention, which is set to be held May 3-6 in the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center, will stay in Dallas.
“No politician anywhere can tell the NRA not to come to their city,” Arulanandam told WFAA. “We are already there. Dallas, like every American city and community, is populated by NRA members. Our members work in fire stations and police departments. They save lives in local hospitals and own businesses in communities urban and rural throughout this country.”
The call for the move comes after 17 students and teachers were killed when confessed gunman Nikolas Cruz opened fire at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. The shooting marked the deadliest high school shooting in America and the third deadliest shooting in U.S. history, leading many, including survivors, to demand stricter gun laws.
