Opposition to the NY SAFE Act continues to grow. Protests, lawsuits and petitions from around the state have plagued the law since its passing on Jan 15.
The latest protest march was announced yesterday to be held on Mar 23 in Syracuse. The "Revolution Against Tyranny" rally is sponsored by a number of gun advocate groups to include The Oath Keepers of NYS, Turn Albany Upside Down, Women for the Second Amendment (W2A), The Upstate NY Republican Party County Chairmen and The NYS Conservative Party County Chairmen.
According to the online announcement, the march is "be the first of two regional rallies intended to prepare taxpayers for the "March on Albany" on a date in April." The date for that march is yet to be announced, but its purpose is more than just the repeal of the SAFE Act.
The April rally is where "100,000 New Yorkers will demand the resignation of Andrew Cuomo, and those in the legislature who, at a time of high emotion and trauma, when our nation was grieving the horror of the Connecticut mass killing, chose to attack the basic rights of taxpaying citizens for the sole purpose of appeasing the egotistical arrogance of the self-absorbed Andrew Cuomo" the message continued.
The NY SAFE Act was the first state gun control law to be passed following the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings in Newtown, Conn. The law was passed in one night after Governor Cuomo issued a "Message of Necessity" by which the three day review period for any pending legislation was bypassed. The law was voted on after only a couple hours after being introduced in the state senate and after less than an hour in the state assembly.
This legislative process pushed by the governor has come under as much criticism as the provisions of the law itself. According to the groups organizing the Syracuse rally, Governor Cuomo "was more interested in advancing his political career than allowing due process and affording voters the opportunity to weigh in on the issues."
Some NY State lawmakers also have issues with the way the law was passed. State Senator Thomas O'Mara issued a statement calling the method in which the bill was passed a "shoddy legislative process that produced a law that’s full of failings and shortcomings, and places even more state-imposed burdens on already hard-pressed upstate citizens and localities" (http://bit.ly/ZEYykC).
As of Monday, there are five lawsuits filed against the law. One of these filed by the group We the People of New York have over 1200 plaintiffs and has some success in the courts. There are also seven online petitions seeking the repeal of the law.
There is another rally set for the Village of Gouverneur on Apr 13 at 10:30 am on Main Street. Tom King President of New York State Rifle and Pistol Association is scheduled to speak at that rally.
The largest rally so far was held in front of the state capital in Albany on Feb 28 where over 7000 gun rights advocates came to march against the SAFE Act. A counter-protest was scheduled by the labor union organization SEIU, but they cancelled just days before the event.
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