Entertainment
Olivia Rodrigo Spoke Out For Stricter Gun Laws Following Texas Shooting
“I’m so heartbroken that this is the reality that we’re living in.”
Renewed outrage and discussion about stricter gun laws in America has been sparked online in the wake of the most recent mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Ulvade, Texas, where an 18-year-old gunman shot and killed 19 children and 2 teachers on Tuesday.
The latest person of influence to speak up is Olivia Rodrigo, who expressed her sorrow for what happened, and advocated for stricter gun control laws during her show in Los Angeles on Wednesday night.
“I’m so, so devastated about the shooting that happened in Texas today,” said Rodrigo to the crowd in between songs per audience-captured footage. “We should never have to worry about our safety or our lives at places that are dedicated to learning and growing, and I’m so heartbroken that this is the reality that we’re living in. And we need stricter gun control laws in America.”
Earlier this month, Rodrigo also used the stage to also speak out against the potential overturning of Roe v. Wade and abortion rights, saying at a show in Washington D.C.: “Our bodies should never be in the hands of politicians. I hope we can raise our voices to protect our right, to have a safe abortion, which is a right that so many people before us have worked so hard to get.”
Rodrigo is far from the only public figure or musician who has voiced their thoughts about gun control following the Ulvade shooting. Taylor Swift also responded to the news in a rare post to Twitter on Wednesday, sharing an emotional video of Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr demanding change in gun laws and action from political leaders.
“Filled with rage and grief, and so broken by the murders in Uvalde,” Swift wrote. “By Buffalo, Laguna Woods and so many others. By the ways in which we, as a nation, have become conditioned to unfathomable and unbearable heartbreak. Steve’s words ring so true and cut so deep.”
Musician, producer, and brother to Billie Eilish, Finneas, called out those who don’t want to talk about gun control in his own scathing post on the platform. “Anyone saying ‘now isn’t the time to talk about gun control’ doesn’t care that kids got f*cking murdered today,” he wrote.
Elsewhere online, everyone from Chris Evans, Elijah Wood, LeBron James, Stephen King, and national poet laurate Amanda Gorman have spoken up about the tragedy. In addition to the calls to action and reactions of horror to the news, many have also begun expressing their frustration over the growing relentlessness of mass shootings in the country, and the baffling inaction of our political leaders to do anything about it.
Quinta Brunson, the comedian and actress who plays an elementary school teacher on the acclaimed show Abbot Elementary, voiced her frustration upon receiving the news of the Ulvade shooting — the country’s 27th school shooting of 2022.
“insane that we just keep living like this. really don't want to. tired of gun violence,” she posted to Twitter. “are they just going to go visit this school, too? and the next shooting site? aren't they embarrassed of doing nothing preventative at all?”
See more reactions below.
