Safe Texas Town Hall on gun safety hosted in El Paso

EL PASO, TX - Texas state democrats are conducting a series of Town Halls regarding gun violence, and the first one is being hosted by the El Paso State Delegation.

The delegation said in a statement that it is "[their] responsibility to keep our communities and schools safe from such devastating tragedies," such as the recent massacre of Robb Elementary in Uvalde, TX.

They also stated that they know the people of El Paso "know better than most the depth of the loss and suffering mass shootings inflict on a community," speaking of the August 2019 Walmart massacre that left 23 people dead.

Participants in the town hall will include El Paso County school superintendents, the El Paso City Fire Chief and Emergency Department Personnel, and the El Paso State Delegation.

The Sunset room at the Starlight Event Center was filled with El Pasoans waiting to have to voice heard. A long line of parents, grandparents, doctors, and teachers gave passionate speeches at the microphone in front of the delegation.

“After Uvalde, the following day I called my grandson. He lives up there in Illinois, and I asked him, ‘Did you hear about Uvalde?’ He goes, ‘Yeah, grandpa. It’s just another day in America.’ He’s 10 years old. It’s normalized," one El Paso man recounted to the delegates.

State Rep. Lina Ortega spoke to the public about her high hopes to pass "common-sense gun reform" in the wake of the August 3rd Walmart massacre, but all of Ortega's proposed legislation was denied. ABC 7 asked Ortega if the same thing would happen after the Uvalde school shooting.

"I hope not. I mean I hope that — these are children that are getting massacred. We need to do something to stop it," Rep. Ortega explained.

State Sen. César Blanco was also in attendance at the town hall. His "lie and try" bill passed last legislative session which makes it illegal for anyone in Texas to lie on a background check.

“There is hope that we can pass laws. It can happen. The question is how far do we go? Last session they passed open carry, and now anyone can carry a gun anywhere without concealing it. We should be making it harder for bad people to get guns and it seems like the legislature continues to lax the gun regulations in our state, and it’s unfortunate that kids are dying as a result," Sen. Blanco explained.