Roach Joins Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition
Roach announced last week he had joined other mayors in Westchester and throughout the country, who have signed a letter addressed to President Obama, Senate Majority Leader Reid and Speaker Boehner outlining steps they can take to end gun violence. The letter was written by Mayors Against Illegal Guns (MAIG), a coalition pushing for tighter gun control measures.
As of last week, there were 10 mayors in Westchester including the county’s five city mayors, White Plains Mayor Tom Roach, New Rochelle Mayor Noam Bramson, Mount Vernon Mayor, Ernie Davis, Peekskill Mayor Mary Foster and Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano, who had signed the letter.
Specifically, the mayors are asking Washington to require every gun buyer to pass a criminal background check and get high-capacity rifles and ammunition magazines off the streets by reviewing the assault weapons ban that expired in 2004 and making gun trafficking a federal crime.
Roach said, “It is past time for action. Continuing to do nothing is an affront to the victims of these tragedies and their families. We have an obligation to them, to our families and to our country to demand a plan.”
MAIG is a bipartisan coalition of more than 750 mayors started by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino in 2006. The coalition supports gun control initiatives to fight illegal gun trafficking and reduce gun violence across the nation.
The group’s mission states that it “supports the Second Amendment and rights of citizens to own guns” but adds “we can do more to stop criminals from getting guns while also protecting the rights of citizens to freely own them.”
