A fresh wave of young political leaders is gaining power across the United States by leveraging their firsthand encounters with firearms tragedies to advocate for reforms they contend the public is ready for.
Their rise signifies a nearly decade-long transformation. Firearms safety has moved from a political taboo rarely spoken about on campaign trails to a central platform that candidates, predominantly Democrats, are now running – and winning – on.
Widespread Fatigue Fuels the Shift
This change is fueled in part by a collective exhaustion with gun violence, including large-scale attacks – like recent incidents at Brown University and Bondi Beach – as well as firearms suicides and community violence, which continue to tear apart countless American lives.
“It’s been an issue that has directly touched me,” said a Tennessee state representative. “Serving as a legislator and witnessing a lack of action, while remembering the effects in my neighborhood, that compelled me to say this is an issue we must address urgently.”
Ironically, the day he was took office was also the deadliest shooting in the state’s history, when six individuals were shot and killed at a Covenant school.
From Protest to Prominence
Shortly after, he and two other fellow legislators staged a demonstration on the legislative chamber to demand stronger gun policy. Pearson and his colleague were removed from office for their protest, an act that propelled them to widespread recognition. They later were reinstated.
Subsequently, his sibling died of a firearm suicide. This was far from his only encounter with violent loss; previously, his guide and a former classmate were also shot and killed in Memphis.
Now, Pearson is running for a seat in the US Congress by centering gun violence at the core of his agenda. He highlights how it impacts the state’s young residents, for whom firearms injuries are the leading cause of death.
A Movement Becomes a Pipeline
The emergence of candidates centering gun violence is also a result of the expanding advocacy network across the country, which has evolved into a pipeline for political newcomers.
- Maxwell Frost, the nation’s first Gen Z US representative, began as a volunteer with a student-led gun-safety group.
- Lucy McBath, a Congresswoman, and Abigail Spanberger, a Virginia governor-elect, were both involved with a grassroots safety organization before running for office.
- Cameron Kasky, a survivor who was instrumental in student protests, has recently announced his own campaign for a House seat.
“I see myself as a small part of a larger cause. It’s the reason I got into politics,” said Frost. “I was 15 when Sandy Hook happened and that’s what inspired me to get involved.”
A Seismic Shift in Politics
Nowadays, calling out pro-gun groups like the National Rifle Association is common among Democrats. But less than 15 years ago, many centrist politicians held ‘A’ grades from the NRA, and the topic of gun control was considered a career-ending issue.
“It was gradual and not linear,” said a violence-prevention activist. “We saw our supporters seeking election and thought it was logical that someone shaping legislation would want to take the next step.”
Many point to the 2012 mass shooting and the subsequent failure in Washington to pass gun-safety policies as a watershed moment. This led once NRA-backed politicians to abandon their high ratings to call for restrictions on assault weapons. Now, having an F rating from the group is a point of pride.
“After Parkland, zero Democratic members of Congress had an A rating and were proud about it. That’s a dramatic change,” the advocate continued. “It shattered a lot of myths and anxieties about being proactive on this issue.”
Personal Loss Fuels Political Action
The epidemic of firearms deaths has also activated first-time entrants to politics.
Shaundelle Brooks lost her son in a 2018 mass shooting in Nashville. Tragically, another son was wounded leaving a concert. After repeated trips of advocating at the capitol with no response, she chose to run for office.
“Testifying for seven years and having them just dismiss me, made it clear that I needed to do something greater than what I was doing,” Brooks said.
“When people see you’re directly affected, they feel that you’re more authentic to talk about this. They know it’s not a partisan game for us,” she stated.
‘It’s Our Turn’ to Lead
These shared stories of tragedy connect advocates across the country, forming what those affected describe as a “group no one wants to join.”
“We don’t have a formal network, but we all feel called in this time to be a part of the healing,” the representative said of his fellow advocates. “The world is full of seemingly unsolvable issues. We’ve given people generations to solve them. And now, with our the people behind us, the moment is ours.”
He argues that addressing gun violence also requires focusing on common-ground problems like mental health access and housing security, which might find greater support even in Republican-led legislatures. This broader view shows that being focused on ending firearms tragedies isn’t just about gun laws, but also about addressing the underlying conditions.
“We’re not one-dimensional politicians,” he said. “We understand the connected nature of the harms. It’s not just gun violence. It’s economic hardship, pollution, deprived communities – these are the places with the highest levels of violence. We need leaders who have proximity to that reality.”
In the end, Pearson says inaction at the national level on policies like extreme risk protection orders and waiting periods has deadly outcomes.
“Due to this stagnation, people are dying,” he said. “This problem won’t be fixed by doing what we’ve done in the past.”
