Let's work together to secure our schools and stop school violence. We protect our banks, our sports stadiums and our government buildings better than we protect our schools. That must change. #StopSchoolViolenceAct #DefendTheSecond #NRA pic.twitter.com/98dWIv0giM
— NRA (@NRA) March 14, 2018
The National Rifle Association (NRA) countered calls for new gun control legislation on Wednesday as thousands of students across the country walked out of schools to protest gun violence.
The NRA tweeted an image depicting an AR-15 style rifle, the same gun used in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting last month that killed 17 students and faculty in Parkland, Fla., with the caption, “I’ll control my own guns, thank you.”
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The tweet came during the planned nationwide student protests one month after the Feb. 14 Florida shooting. Students are protesting gun violence and demanding that lawmakers pass new gun laws to make their schools safer.
In a second tweet, an NRA spokesman says in a video that passing new gun control measures would blame “good, honest people for the acts of murderers.”
“Passing new gun control laws won’t protect our kids, because criminals willing to commit murder will never obey the law,” the spokesman says.
“Let’s work together to secure our schools and stop school violence. We protect our banks, our sports stadiums and our government buildings better than we protect our schools. That must change,” the message adds.
The NRA has opposed new gun control laws, including suing Florida for new legislation, and has called for a focus on different solutions.
On Sunday, the Trump administration released a school safety plan, which includes calling on Congress to strengthen background checks and providing grant money for school districts to train armed school personnel.
The plan did not include major gun control measures that President Trump had previously indicated he would support, including raising the age required to purchase a rifle and universal background checks.