“You think you just fell out of a coconut tree? You exist in the context of all in which you live and what came before you.” 1
That phrasing from Kamala Harris—quoting her late South Indian mother, Shyamala Gopalan—has taken social media by storm. It refers to the fact that individuals are shaped by their cultures, communities, and histories.
And often, those same individuals are the ones who shape their cultures, communities, and histories.
When it comes to gun violence prevention, Kamala Harris is a clear action-taker.
Under the watch of the Biden-Harris Administration, the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (BSCA) was signed into law. The first significant federal piece of gun legislation in nearly 30 years, it didn’t just fall out of a coconut tree. BSCA exists in the context of all that came before it. And it continues to exist in the context in which we live: One where Americans deserve to have the freedom to live safe from gun violence.
The path to the passage of BSCA was paved by decades of action by gun violence survivors and gun violence prevention advocates. A movement of parents, students, families, survivors, gun owners, and concerned citizens—many wearing red shirts—turned gun violence prevention from a third-rail topic to one on which candidates run (and win!) campaigns. This is a movement built on the knowledge that freedom means our communities, our kids, and our schools are safe from gun violence.
Under the Biden-Harris Administration, the United States saw the strongest executive-branch commitment to gun safety in its history. And we need those who next hold office in the White House to share that same commitment to keeping our kids and schools safe.
Vice President Kamala Harris championed BSCA because, to her, the context in which our children live matters.
BSCA included $300 million in additional funding for STOP School Violence Act grants. It also allocated more than $1.5 billion for states and communities to:
- Make our schools safer,
- Improve access to mental health services, and
- Help young people deal with the trauma and grief resulting from gun violence.
The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act also established enhanced background checks for firearm purchasers under the age of 21. Firearms are the leading cause of death for young people ages 18 to 20. The firearm suicide rate among this group has increased 41 percent in the last decade. Additionally, data shows that 18- to 20-year-olds commit gun homicides at triple the rate of adults 21 years and older.
Since BSCA’s passage, 800 people under the age of 21 have been stopped from purchasing a gun because the enhanced background checks revealed that the purchasers were prohibited by law from purchasing or possessing firearms. Many of the deadliest mass shootings in modern history—including at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Robb Elementary School, and Tops Friendly Market—were perpetrated by people under 21, and they often had red flags that weren’t seen. This enhanced background check process has likely been life-saving.
In March 2024, Vice President Harris visited Parkland, Florida, where she spoke with survivors of the 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. There, Harris highlighted the launch of ERPO.org, the national Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) resource center in partnership with the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions. This resource was made possible by the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act.
At the event, Vice President Harris called on the 21 states and the District of Columbia that have enacted Extreme Risk laws to use BSCA funds to implement their ERPO programs. She also called on states without Extreme Risk laws to pass them—highlighting the Administration’s comprehensive approach to addressing gun violence.
To Kamala Harris, freedom means keeping our children and our schools safe from gun violence. And that starts with people like you.
Be Part of the Context
One conversation with another person can make all the difference. Our Gun Sense Action Network volunteers take action from home to drive phone calls into lawmakers’ offices and pass key legislation (like BSCA!)
Join the Gun Sense Action Network to plug new supporters into the movement and to change the context in which we live.
- Read more about the South Indian cultural roots of this quote in this article by Vishakha N. Desai. ↩︎