Who We Are

Let Our Better Angels Prevail

Posted by Kimberly Allen

Yesterday, Wallace+ shared his experience at a gun show this past August during a briefing at the Virginia General Assembly about legislation to close the gun show loophole. He spoke along with Del. Jennifer McClellan, sponsor of the bill, and Lori Haas, whose daughter survived the 2007 Virginia Tech shooting. Also supporting the measure are Richmond Mayor Dwight Jones and Police Chief Bryan Norwood.

In opening remarks, Wallace+ said:

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE COVERAGE ON CBS-6 (WTVR)

Remarks of The Rev. Wallace Adams-Riley
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Virginia General Assembly Building, House Briefing Room

Welcome and thank you for coming this morning. It is heartening to know that more and more people, more and more Virginians, are concerned about closing the gun show loophole. I'm the Reverend Wallace Adams-Riley and I serve as Rector of St. Paul's Episcopal Church here on Capitol Square. I'm a resident of Richmond, a gun-owner, a hunter, a patriot, a husband, a father, a Christian.

Last week, just outside the doors of this building on Capitol Grounds, I joined with Virginians from across the Commonwealth to remember all those hurt by gun violence and pray for peace.

In reading some of the coverage of the vigil, one phrase used stopped me: "the so-called gun show loophole."

So-called.

I'm here today to tell you that there's nothing "so-called" about it.

This summer, I visited a gun show on the edge of Richmond with a fellow pastor and two people whose children were shot in the 2007 Virginia Tech shooting. (Both children survived.)

While there, as I've since reported to my parish and to fellow clergy around the city, I saw a 50 caliber assault rifle. Perfectly legal. And, depending on who was selling it, it didn't necessarily require a background check to purchase. It can fire three miles; and it is deadly accurate up to a mile.

I saw vendors at tables selling virtually identical merchandise, but at one table you needed to pass a background check to buy a gun; at the next table, no check.

I watched as people milled around with guns on their shoulders, also selling without checks. As a hunter and gun owner, I know guns and some of these weapons being sold without background checks had nothing to do with duck blinds.

There were high-caliber military weapons and heavy artillery on top of table after table of guns and magazine clips to make those guns even more lethal on a large scale.

As many of you know, Colin Goddard (who was shot four times in the Virginia Tech shooting) went undercover and documented such sales. But seeing it in person, and right after a church service no less, is an experience seared into my memory.

There are 65 gun shows a year in Virginia. How many guns get into the wrong hands at those shows?

My experience at a gun show, and my faith in the Prince of Peace, compels me to pray for and work for an end to the "No questions asked" gun sales on the outskirts of our city.

We can do better than the status quo of the any gun/any place/any time agenda.

And we can close the gun show loophole because for all the attempts to deny the truth of the loophole with language like "so-called," we know better.

For all the opinion columnists that want to make this appear like a difficult issue, the rest of us know better. We Virginians know better. We gun owners know better.

Nearly 85% of Virginians say they want to close the gun show loophole.

And, get this: two-thirds of the National Rifle Association's own members say they support closing it.

We know that it's not too much to check out the background of someone seeking to buy a deadly gun, especially one that can fire up to 70 rounds per minute or one that's deadly accurate up to a mile or a magazine clip that let's you spray over 30 bullets before reloading, wherever and whenever you want to.

For the sake of the Prince of Peace, and for the sake of our fellow citizens, we must no longer sit on the sidelines and wait for more Virginians to die; for more guns purchased in Virginia to find their way trafficked to other states where they are used to kill and maim our brothers and our sisters.

We know better. Our elected officials, who represent us, know better. So let's act like it and let our better angels prevail.

May God give our lawmakers the courage and good judgment to do the right thing and close the Gun Show Loophole.

Tags: faith in action, gun show loophole, guns