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Singer-songwriter Don McLean has announced he will stop performing at the National Rifle Association’s annual meeting this weekend in Houston, saying it would be “disrespectful and hurtful” to act days after 19 children and two adults were killed in a mass shooting. in the state.
McLean, best known for his legendary 1971 folk rock anthem “American Pie,” was scheduled to perform Saturday night during the NRA’s Grand Ole Night of Freedom concert. But those plans changed when a gunman, identified by police as Salvador Rolando Ramos, 18, entered Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, and began firing on children in the worst mass shooting at an American school in nearly a decade.
“In light of recent events in Texas, I have decided that it would be disrespectful and hurtful for me to act for the NRA at its convention in Houston this week,” McLean, 76, said in a statement. “I’m sure everyone who plans to attend this event is also shocked and sick by these events. After all, we’re all Americans.”
The news was first reported by the Portland Press Herald in Maine.
McLean is one of the few artists to announce that they will no longer perform at this weekend’s convention. Country and gospel singer Larry Gatlin and Larry Stewart of the country band Restless Heart also said Thursday that they were leaving in response to the shooting at Robb Elementary.
McLean’s departure comes when gun maker Daniel Defense, who made the rifle Ramos used in Tuesday’s massacre, appears to have also withdrawn from the NRA convention. The NRA’s list of exhibitors no longer includes Daniel Defense among the hundreds of gun manufacturers, gun parts manufacturers and taxidermists who appear in the convention hall. The stand that Daniel Defense once claimed now only appears as “the NRA.”
Sniper rifle maker Uvalde posted a picture of a boy with a gun before the massacre
This weekend’s annual NRA meeting in Houston, about 275 miles from Uvalde, is the largest gun lobby meeting this year and arrives after cancellations due to the coronavirus pandemic. It will feature talks from a group that includes former President Donald Trump, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (right) and Sen. Ted Cruz (r-Tex.).
Trump will speak at the NRA meeting in Texas days after the school shooting
The NRA, which has more than 5 million members, is fighting a lawsuit by the New York Attorney General accusing its executives of spending millions of dollars wrong.
Critics have criticized the NRA and Republicans for accepting millions of dollars in contributions to the organization’s campaign during its political career. Nineteen current or recent Republican senators, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) And Senators Rob Portman (Ohio) and Joni Ernst (Iowa), have raised at least $ 1 million each in campaign contributions. the NRA during their careers, according to data compiled by the Brady campaign to prevent armed violence in 2019.
After the Texas shooting, Republicans face online anger over NRA money
The NRA tweeted Wednesday that the organization and its members sent their “deepest condolences” to the families of the victims of “this horrible and evil crime.” The gun rights organization also noted that the convention would continue and that the NRA would “reflect on these events.”
“While it is being investigated and facts are still emerging, we acknowledge that it was the act of a lone and upset criminal,” the organization tweeted. “As we meet in Houston, we will reflect on these events, pray for the victims, acknowledge our patriotic members, and commit to redouble our commitment to ensuring the safety of our schools.”
On Thursday, Gatlin said he was also dropping out of action because of what he cited as “obsolete and unthinking NRA positions on firearms” in the United States.
“I cannot, with good conscience, act at the NRA convention in Houston this weekend,” Gatlin, 74, said in a statement. “While I agree with most NRA positions, I’ve come to believe that while background checks wouldn’t stop all crazy people with a gun, it’s at least a step in the right direction. right to try to avoid the kind of tragedy we saw this week in Uvalde, in my beloved and crying TEXAS.
Gatlin added that while he believes arming teachers would have helped prevent mass shootings, the NRA should do more in light of the shooting in Uvalde.
“My prayers and thoughts go out to all who suffer, and I pray that the ANR will reconsider some of its outdated and poorly thought-out positions on firearms in AMERICA,” he said. “I’m a second amendment guy, but the second amendment shouldn’t apply to everyone. It’s that simple.”
Stewart echoed Gatlin in his support for the Second Amendment, but said the events in Uvalde were too much for him.
“So I made the decision to retire as an interpreter for the NRA convention this weekend, especially considering the event is on its way,” Stewart, 63, said in a statement. press release. “I am a big believer in the Second Amendment and I know that the NRA is a great organization that teaches strict gun safety with members of law-abiding citizens who love our country. I just think this is best for me. at this moment”.
Artists still scheduled to play at Saturday’s NRA event include country music artist Lee Greenwood, whose “God Bless the USA” became a staple at Trump’s rallies. . Trump confirmed on his social network, Social Truth, that he still plans to speak at the weekend convention.
“America needs real solutions and real leadership right now, not politicians and partisanship,” Trump wrote. “That’s why I will keep my long-standing commitment to speak in Texas at the NRA Convention and deliver an important address in the United States. In the meantime, we all continue to pray for the victims, their families, and our entire nation; we are all in this together!
Isaac Arnsdorf contributed to this report.