As a resident of Sea Cliff, I would like to remind the editors of The Island Now that in 2018 Senator Jim Gaughran was designated a Gun Sense Candidate of Distinction by Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America and was instrumental in the passage of nine gun safety bills passed here in New York.
Senator Gaughran is an ally to the gun violence prevention movement and an advocate for keeping our communities safe while also respecting the Second Amendment and the rights of responsible gun owners.
Make no mistake, the NRA is a reprehensible organization that has Mitch McConnell, as well as many other Senate Republicans in a stranglehold. The gun lobby has already thrown $1.6 million at the Senate Majority Leader this year in order to block the background checks bill.
It is horrifying to many residents of Nassau County that not only is the NRA raising funds in our backyard, but they are raffling off firearms, including AR15 parts.
I join Senator Gaughran in shaming The Friends of the NRA and The Inn at New Hyde Park for supporting an organization the city of San Francisco has deemed a “Domestic Terror Group.”
Surely as a county: we are better than this.
Tracy Bacher
Nassau Lead
Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America
Sea Cliff
Sent from my iPad
Begin forwarded message:
From: “Michael B. Schulman”
Date: September 14, 2019 at 8:15:50 PM EDT
To: “Michael B. Schulman”
Subject: Island now
To the editors of The Island Now.
I am dismayed and truly disappointed in your Editorial slamming Senator James Gaughran for who, as you put it, made the NRA fundraiser at the Inn “public”. The NRA made the event public. Last year the Inn at New Hyde Park lied to the protesters. The representatives of the Inn claimed that the ONLY reason they had to go through with “the event” was that a contract had already been signed and they could not cancel it. Interpretation — in 2019 the Inn would not again allow the NRA fundraiser. THEY LIED TO US. Senator Gaughran is simply calling out the Inn at New Hyde Park for their lies and hypocrisy.
My son, Scott J Beigel, was the geography teacher and cross country coach murdered in Parkland, Florida while saving the lives of students in the deadliest high school shooting in American history. I am not a member of any gun safety organization. I am just a mother whose son was murdered by a 19 year old. A 19 year old who shot my son 6 times within 3 seconds from 5 feet away with an AR-15 military style assault weapon — a weapon of war.
Your reading of Senator Gaughran’s letter to the Inn is full of innuendo and misstatements. Nowhere in his letter does Senator Gaughran state that “The Inn at New Hyde Park or any other business not do business with the Republican Party or its friends”. In fact, nowhere in his letter does Senator Gaughran single out the Republican Party or their friends. He singles out the Inn who is hosting a group, the NRA, that does nothing to stop the epidemic of gun violence in this country. You, the editors of The Island Now, are making this a partisan issue, not Senator Gaughran. Senator Gaughran is making this an issue of life and death.
As like any business, The Inn has the right to choose with whom they want to do business. The Island Now can choose which advertisements and stories to publish. The Inn at New Hyde Park has chosen to do business with an organization that continuously refuses to even try to put an end to preventable gun violence.
We are not trying to stop the Inn from “make a living”. It is however important to take notice of who it is that is helping the Inn “make that living”. Would The Island Now editorial board be so quick to criticize Senator Gaughran if it were neo-Nazis or white supremacists choosing to have their “fundraiser” at the Inn? I would think not.
You also cite the example of Walmart and Dicks, along with others, who made a moral decision to take a stand that the lives and safety of people are more important than profits and dollars. I am sure you know who criticized them for taking this action … the NRA. The Inn is supporting the NRA ‘s resistance to reasonable gun safety legislation by allowing them the hold their fundraiser at the Inn. The NRA’s philosophy is diametrically opposed to reasonable gun safety legislation. The Inn at New Hyde Park should have the moral compass and stand up to the NRA.
By hosting the NRA fundraiser, the Inn at New Hyde Park made the choice that money is more important than lives. It was their decision to host the fundraiser and we have every right to call them out on it. Do not criticize Senator Gaughran for his willingness to speak up for the safety of the public. Instead, look inward and ask yourself why in your editorial do you support a business making money over the safety and lives of your readers. Respectfully
Linda Beigel Schulman