CHICAGO – This afternoon, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals struck down the federal restriction on 18-20-year-olds purchasing handguns. In response to the news, the Gen Z-focused gun violence prevention organization Project Unloaded released the following statements:
“This ruling is an invitation to the gun industry to keep marketing guns to young people,” said Nina Vinik, founder and president of Project Unloaded. “Gun violence is the number one killer of children and teens in the US and yet our justice system is making it harder to keep young people safe. It’s time to address gun violence with strategies that can’t be stopped by the courts or that rely on a friendly Congress and White House to succeed. It’s up to us to empower teens and young adults with the facts showing why gun ownership puts them at greater risk. ”
“This decision is more proof that we cannot rely on the courts to protect us,” said Zoe Kaufman, a Project Unloaded Youth Council member and college sophomore. “Young people must protect each other. We do that by choosing not to own or use guns ourselves and using the power that we have to change culture to lead other young people to decide against guns too. Just because we legally can have guns doesn’t mean that we should.”
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