Mayor Pureval at White House pushes gun regulations

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Mayor of Cincinnati, Ohio, Aftab Pureval, at the White House July 11, 2022, to celebrate the passage of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, said what keeps him up at night is the daily gun violence.

As part of his ongoing efforts to reduce gun violence in Cincinnati, Mayor Pureval, who is of Indian and Tibetan descent, met with national public safety leaders and policy makers to also discuss what Cincinnati is doing to mitigate gun violence.

During a CNN interview July 11, he said, “What keeps me up at night is the day-to-day casual gun violence that takes place.”

Mayor Pureval, who is the only Democrat to lead a city in a Red state, said that despite the 2019 massacre in Ohio, and the promises made at that time to tighten gun laws, things have actually gone backward.

“In 32 seconds 9 people were killed in Ohio,” he said. Yet, “Unfortunately, (leaders) have gone back…. Our leaders in Ohio have put more guns on the street,” he contended.

““We need federal laws, state and local laws…the gun violence we are seeing is not unique to one specific area of the country. It’s all over the country.” Pureval said on CNN.

“I am extremely grateful for the Biden Administration and its understanding of the incredible challenges we’re facing, both locally and as a nation,” Mayor Aftab said in a statement prior to his visit to the White House. “We cannot do this work alone, and having leaders in Washington to back us up is paramount in creating safer communities for all,” and that his city is helping develop strategies to deal with that.

His visit to Washington came just days after Mayor Pureval outlined various violence prevention strategies and programs aimed at curbing violence in Cincinnati during the summer months.

The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act stands in line with the actions that he believes will make communities safer, the statement said, describing the Act as “commonsense bipartisan proposal to protect America’s children, keep our schools safe, and reduce the threat of violence across the country.” He called it one of the most significant steps Congress has taken in decades to reduce gun violence.

It includes – millions of dollars for mental health, school safety and crisis intervention programs; expanded background checks for individuals under the age of 21 purchasing firearms; narrowing the “boyfriend loophole” by prohibiting someone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence as part of a dating relationship from purchasing or possessing a firearm for at least five years.