Norma Torres: “Last week on this floor, I told a story of a 911 call that I took where an 11-year-old girl was murdered at the hands of…”

“Last week on this floor, I told a story of a 911 call that I took where an 11-year-old girl was murdered at the hands of her uncle. Her name was Yajaira. Today I want to tell you about Ethan Esparza. In 2006, when I was mayor of Pomona, Ethan was shot and killed while he was playing in his front yard during his birthday party. He would have turned 4 years old the next day. The murders of Yajaira and Ethan were completely senseless, but they are not rare. Every day, 91 people are killed because of gun violence. In the United States, you are more than 10 times likely to die because of a firearm than in any other developed country. We have a problem, a problem that isn't going to be solved by simply putting our heads in the sand. It is time to stop this silence. We aren't going to solve this. Now is the time to act. Now is the time to have a discussion about it. ____________________”