PHOENIX — Just over 10 years after former Arizona Rep. Gabby Giffords was shot in the head at a Tucson grocery store, 10 people were killed after gunshots rang out inside a Colorado grocery store on Monday.
Among the people killed in Boulder, Colorado was 51-year-old Eric Talley, a veteran police officer who has served on the force since 2010.
“This is an especially personal tragedy for me,” Giffords said in a statement. “It’s been 10 years, and countless American communities have had to face something similar.”
The shooting comes less than a week after eight people were killed in Atlanta when a gunman traveled to three separate spas and opened fire.
Six of the victims were Asian women, sparking further anxiety within the Asian American community of violently escalating hate crimes connected to the pandemic even though Cherokee County Sheriff Frank Reynolds attempted to dissuade fears and said the suspect was having a “really bad day.”
“As we receive more information, we must remember that every victim has a name,” Giffords said. “They had hopes, dreams, and people who loved them. They are no longer with us because of preventable tragedies.”
The 2011 shooting in Tucson left six people dead – including a 9-year-old girl – a dozen others wounded and Giffords suffering severe injuries that she still grapples with to this day.
The Tucson community came together in January for a memorial on the 10-year anniversary of the massacre, but for Giffords, just remembering isn’t enough.
Giffords and her husband, Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, have become prominent advocates against gun violence and Monday’s shooting has emboldened Giffords’ push for gun control.
“This is not normal, and it doesn’t have to be this way,” she wrote. “It’s beyond time for our leaders to take action.”