Press Releases

Montgomery County Councilmembers Join City of Rockville Mayor Newton and Rockville City Council for Community Vigil in Wake of Mass Shooting in Uvalde, Texas

For Immediate Release: Thursday, May 26, 2022

ROCKVILLE, Md., May 26, 2022—Montgomery County Council President Gabe Albornoz and his Council colleagues will join City of Rockville Mayor Bridget Donnell Newton and the Rockville City Council for a vigil on Friday, May 27 to honor the lives of those slain during a mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas.

"We have a pandemic of growing and epic proportions in our community related to gun violence," said Council President Albornoz. "This should not be a political issue, it is a humanity issue. This year alone so far, more than 100 ghost guns have been confiscated in our community compared to the 70 that were confiscated all of last year. Until our federal and state partners recognize this plague that is upon us, there is only so much we can do. That is why I am calling for not just a moment, but a movement of action."

See the Council President's full remarks about recent natonwide gun violence here. 

The vigil, hosted by City of Rockville Mayor Bridget Donnell Newton, will begin at 5 p.m. on the steps of the Grey Courthouse Office Building in Rockville.

Who: County Council President Gabe Albornoz, County Councilmebers, City of Rockville Mayor Bridget Donnell Newton, Rockville City Councilmembers and the Rev. Barry Moultrie of Mount Calvary Baptist Church.

What: Vigil for the victims of the Robb Elementary School shooting in Uvalde, Texas.

When: 5 p.m. on Friday, May 27, 2022.

Where: Grey Courthouse Office Building, 27 Courthouse Square, Rockville, MD 20850.

Why: At least 21 were killed in Tuesday's mass shooting at Robb Elementary School, most of them schoolchildren. The attack was the second-deadliest school shooting in the U.S., following a 2012 attack at Sandy Hook Elementary in Connecticut. The Uvalde attack came only 10 days after a white gunman killed 10 at a Tops supermarket in a majority Black neighborhood in Buffalo, New York.

Attendees of the Friday evening vigil are encouraged to wear orange in recognition of gun-violence awareness.

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For more information, please contact Kathy Kirk-Dantzler, director of communication for the City of Rockville at: [email protected].

Release ID: 22-217
Media Contact: Lucia Jimenez, Kathy Kirk-Dantzler