JGVPR Statement on Shooting of Minnesota Lawmakers
From JWI’s Jewish Gun Violence Prevention Roundtable on June 16, 2025:
The Jewish Gun Violence Prevention Roundtable is horrified by the murder of Minnesota State Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark and the grievous injuries inflicted on Minnesota State Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette. Our thoughts are with the Hortman and Hoffman families, and we grieve with the people of Minnesota, whose sense of security, stability, and normalcy were shattered by a rain of bullets.
Political violence is a violation of democratic norms and has no place in the United States. The shooter’s access to firearms, including the assault weapons found in his car, enabled him to exact maximum carnage at the Hoffman’s home in a short period of time, then go on to attack the Hortmans. Assault weapons have no place in our communities. Their purpose is to kill as many people as possible in as short a period of time as possible–they are inherently offensive, not defensive, weapons.
We must honor with action the memories of Representative and Mr. Hortman–and all those who have been taken from us by individuals of evil intent wielding weapons of war. When an assault weapon is used in a public mass shooting, nearly 14 times as many people are injured, and twice as many people are killed. We call on lawmakers across the country, both at the federal and state levels, to renew the assault weapons ban, which has been credited with a 70% decrease in mass shooting fatalities in the ten years in which it was in effect. Click here to join the Jewish Gun Violence Prevention Roundtable in urging Congress to reinstate the assault weapons ban.
With heartfelt condolences and solidarity,
Jewish Gun Violence Prevention Roundtable
The Jewish Gun Violence Prevention Roundtable (JGVP Roundtable) works to amplify the collective voice of the Jewish community in addressing the pervasive issue of gun violence in the United States. By uniting individuals and organizations already involved in diverse approaches to combatting gun violence, our roundtable aims to strengthen our efforts and drive meaningful change. Guided by our Jewish values, particularly the principle of 'Lo ta'amod al dam re'echa' (Do not stand idly by the blood of your neighbor), we are compelled to act and intervene in the face of harm. We are further driven by the experiences of being a religious minority disproportionately impacted by hate crimes and alarmed by the epidemic of gun violence that disproportionately impacts the most vulnerable populations. The JGVP Roundtable, representing Jewish organizations across the nation, is committed to forging a future free from gun violence.