Celebrities Call For Action And Gun Reform In Wake Of Texas Church Shooting

'Prayer without action is powerless.'

A number of celebrities have spoken out in a call for “action”, following the mass shooting in Texas over the weekend.

On Sunday (5 November), 26 people were killed in a shooting at a church in Sutherland Springs, Texas.

The response from the US government, including President Trump’s claim this is not “a gun situation” but a problem relating to “mental health”, and Speaker Paul Ryan’s call for “prayers” has been met with a backlash on social media, including from a number of celebrity critics.

Some of the stars who have already spoken out
Some of the stars who have already spoken out
Broadimage/REX/Shutterstock/Startraks Photo/

Katy Perry was among those to voice her outrage, tweeting the simple message: “Prayer without action is powerless.”

Others have also been venting on their social media accounts, highlighting the issue of gun control in the US, in the wake of another mass shooting.

prayer without action is powerless

— KATY PERRY (@katyperry) November 6, 2017

Prayers for #SanAntonio and all the families who are suffering the loss of loved ones. I’ll pray also for #GunControl

— Lady Gaga (@ladygaga) November 5, 2017

Gun control states have lower rates of gun deaths. (Including Illinois!!). Evidence is very clear. https://t.co/RfyZyijqUK

— John Legend (@johnlegend) November 6, 2017

I am absolutely heartbroken over the shooting today in #SutherlandSprings Texas. 💔 #PrayForTexas #EnoughIsEnough #StopGunViolence pic.twitter.com/g42789PiBq

— Reese Witherspoon (@RWitherspoon) November 5, 2017

Prayers are what the victims were doing. If you respond to these attacks with prayers but no action, you are protecting the next murderer.

— josh groban (@joshgroban) November 5, 2017

The world can feel hopeless, but it’s not. We have each other. We have the power to act, for Texas, for Las Vegas, for Orlando. For us all.

— Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) November 6, 2017

Where's the next mass shooting gonna be? Any guesses? Should we try to do anything we can to prevent it? No? Ok cool. Good luck out there!

— billy eichner (@billyeichner) November 5, 2017

#GunControlNow

— Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) November 5, 2017

I don't know how these poor people are supposed to accept that their government watches these mass shootings and does nothing. It's so sick.

— Chelsea Handler (@chelseahandler) November 6, 2017

Screw your thoughts & prayers, screw your guns & screw inaction. We’re at a breaking point & the future’ll judge us. https://t.co/eXxsqv4hHk

— Paul Feig (@paulfeig) November 6, 2017

When a plane crashes, air travel becomes exponentially safer bc of the lessons learned. But 1 mass shooting after another...nothing.

— Sarah Silverman (@SarahKSilverman) November 5, 2017

If the NRA buys you, you can’t very well critique them. pic.twitter.com/K108kJNEHz

— Zach Braff (@zachbraff) November 5, 2017

Gun. Control.

— Sophie Turner (@SophieT) November 6, 2017

when we will end the NRA strangle hold on congress #evilNRA https://t.co/6rzXy9tNxa

— ROSIE (@Rosie) November 5, 2017

At a press conference in Tokyo in the wake of the tragedy, Trump was asked what policies he might support in response to the shooting, explaining he felt the gunman was “a very deranged individual, a lot of problems”.

After suggesting that it was a “little bit too soon” to get into a discussion about the potential reform of gun laws in the US, the President insisted: “This is a mental health problem at the highest level. It’s a very, very sad event.”

Earlier in his speech, Trump had remarked: “Who would ever think a thing like this could happen?”

After fleeing the shooting scene - about 65 km (40 miles) east of San Antonio - the suspect was found dead by a gunshot wound in his vehicle in neighboring Guadalupe County, Wilson County authorities said.

A statement from the Wilson County Sheriff’s Office and the Texas Department of Public Safety said: “The exact circumstances of the gunman’s death are still under investigation.”

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