At the George R Brown Convention Center in downtown Houston, a large sticker advertises the National Rifle Association, NRA. At the riot fence on the other side of the street, a woman struggles with tears, while a man has a hard time keeping his anger in check.
– It could be your grandson next time, Malcolm Hackney shouts, when some of the participants from the NRA cross the street to get down in a parking garage.
It’s only been three days since the school shooting in Uvalde, West Texas, in which 19 children and two teachers lost their lives. Hundreds of protesters have gathered at the convention center to mark anger and grief – with slogans such as “Not one more!” and “disappear, NRA!”.
– This is so disrespectful, so low. They should have canceled. Or moved the meeting, says Lola Ester.
Steven Lawrence can only agree.
– It is so unbelievably tone deaf. Grotesque. Just a few days ago we saw dead children and now they are holding a gun party in Houston, he says.
Several protesters say they own firearms and that they like to hunt. But they demand that background checks on arms buyers be tightened and that automatic weapons be banned.
– Americans love their firearms. But a majority of the population is not behind the current laws. People want security tightened, says Mary Flood Nugent at the riot fence.
Some carry signs where they link the abortion issue with the firearms debate here in Texas, where Republicans, led by Gov. Greg Abbott, have made it easy to walk around with firearms and almost impossible to terminate a pregnancy.
Elisabeth Ramirez carries a poster in which she accuses Abbott and Senator Ted Cruz of ignoring children if they are shot to death or freeze to death and young girls who are raped and denied health care.
– I have three daughters and I have to stand here today to be able to look them in the eye, she says.
She says that she tried to withhold information about the school shooting in Uvalde for the youngest girl who is only seven years old.
– But she came to me at night anyway. She understood that something was wrong. But politicians do nothing.
Facts. NRA
The National Rifle Association of America, NRA, was formed in 1871. It is a lobby group fighting for the right to buy and carry weapons in the United States.
The organization has strong ties to Congress – and many politicians, primarily Republicans, receive financial support.
In recent years, the NRA has been shaken by internal power struggles and the organization can be described as weakened. The annual meeting in Houston 2022 would have been a comeback. The list of speakers includes former President Donald Trump.
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