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'Ban all the guns, sir': Internet responds to Sen Chris Murphy's speech begging for gun reform

'Seriously, ban guns. These kids weren’t born when Sandy Hook happened, and we did nothing, and now they died, too,' wrote a user

Nearly a decade ago, America woke up to the horror of the mass shooting at The Sandy Hook Elementary School, Connecticut. The gunman who was identified as 20-year-old Adam Lanza shot and killed 26 people, of which 20 victims were children aged between six and seven years old. The incident has since been dubbed the deadliest mass shooting at an elementary school in US history. At the time of the Sandy Hook shooting, Chris Murphy, now the Democratic Senator for Connecticut, was the Congressman for the district. He spearheaded the discussions on gun control and reforms.

When the recent gory shooting incident on Tuesday in Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, claimed the lives of fourteen students and a teacher, Murphy immediately drew comparisons to both the incidents and made a passionate speech to the Senate requesting gun reform on Tuesday. In his speech, the Connecticut Senator questioned the Senate on what they were doing while innocent children were being gunned down. He said, "Fourteen kids dead in an elementary school in Texas right now. What are we doing? What are we doing? Just days after a shooter walked into a grocery store to gun down African American patrons, we have another Sandy Hook on our hands. What are we doing?" "As the kids run for their lives, we doing nothing. What are we doing? Why are you here if not to solve a problem as existential as this? This isn't inevitable. These kids weren't unlucky. This only happens in this country and nowhere else," he added. 

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He concluded his moving speech by begging his colleagues to pass laws that would make chances of such incidents happening yet again 'less likely'. "But I am here on this floor to beg. To literally get down on my hands and knees and beg my colleagues: find a path forward here. Work with us to find a way to pass laws that make this less likely. There is a common denominator that we can find. There's a place where we can achieve agreement that may not guarantee that America never ever again sees a mass shooting, that may not overnight cut in half the number... it will not solve the problem of American violence itself," he stated.

The Senator's speech received an overwhelmingly positive response on Twitter. Several users extended their support to Murphy's plea for gun control and reforms and lauded him for his brave stance. A user tweeted, "Chris Murphy displays heart every time he speaks. He is someone I look up to. “Senator Murphy spoke to reporters as he walked off the Senate floor, saying, "spare me the bullshit about mental illness. We don't have any more mental illness than any other country in the world." "Looks like Chris Murphy needs to lead this and not let up. Ban all the guns, sir," wrote another user. "Why are guns still legal despite the inhumane mass shootings transpiring so frequently? As Sen Chris murphy stated… What are we doing? Why do politicians exist if they are just gonna sit and watch?" questioned a user. Another user praised, "Senator Chris Murphy is a national treasure! Admirer from across the sound. No one speaks more eloquently on gun control."

Just like Senator Murphy, many internet users on Twitter too drew comparisons between the Sandy Hook shooting and Robb Elementary School shooting in Texas and slammed the government for allowing such violence. A user expressed, "THEY SAID NEVER AGAIN AFTER SANDY HOOK AND HISTORY REPEATED ITSELF AFTER 12YEARS! THIS WILL NEVER STOP UNLESS THEY BAN F***ING GUN LAWS!!!!!WHATS SO DIFFICULT ABOUT THAT??? OR ARE THESE POS GOP WAITING UNTIL IT HITS HOME FOR THEM? F*** YOU ALL." "19 and counting… Remember Sandy Hook? That massacre spurred outrage and millions of guns have since been sold. But let’s ban abortion," chided another user. "Seriously, ban guns. These kids weren’t born when Sandy Hook happened, and we did nothing, and now they died, too," pointed out a user. 

The shooter behind Tuesday's Texas shootings was identified as 18-year-old Salvador Ramos. According to reports, he reportedly shot his grandmother dead before entering the school with what appeared to be an assault rifle and opened fire. The Robb Elementary School has over 500 students aged between seven and nine, and about 90% of them are believed to be Hispanic. Ramos was killed by the police at the scene. The motive behind his shooting hasn't been revealed yet.