On Monday, Livingston County became the 28th county in the state to pass a resolution supporting gun rights. These resolutions are not legally binding. Language varies from place to place, but the basic idea is to affirm that counties should uphold constitutional gun rights, no matter what laws state and federal governments may pass.
Linda Brundage, the executive director of the Michigan Coalition to Prevent Gun Violence, told Stateside that she thinks much of the outrage about gun control legislation stems from a misunderstanding about what those laws would do.
“I think it’s really unfortunate that it's so divisive. And what that suggests to me is people are not talking to one another," she said. "The gun industry is selling fear so that people believe they must be armed. Again, nobody wants to take away guns."
At the Livingston County Board of Commissioners meeting last night, attendees expressed discontent at Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s support for “red flag” laws. Also known as extreme risk protection laws, they allow law enforcement to remove an individual’s firearms if a judge determines the person is a risk to themselves or others.
Brundage said "red flag" laws and other gun control legislation are not about taking away people's firearms. Safety, she explained, is the "bottom line" for her and other advocates.
"And it seems like, you know, this effort in Michigan, at this present time, is designed to prevent the passage of this legislation, these kinds of legislations. And from our perspective, that’s unfortunate because we know they will save lives.”
This post was written by Stateside production assistant Olive Scott.
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