Joy Behar got blunt on Wednesday’s episode of “The View,” saying that if more Black people in the country owned guns, politicians would enact gun reform much quicker.
The hosts spent most of the Hot Topics discussion on gun reform once more, as they regularly have been since the horrific killing of 19 children and two teachers in Uvalde, Texas. In the days following the mass shooting, the women at the table have offered their thoughts on what will actually prompt congress to act, suggesting this week that gun advocates be forced to see “these graphic photographs of what these guns do to little kids bodies.”
The hosts got heated as most of them once again argued that AR-15s need to be taken off the market altogether. Host Joy Behar criticized the Republican party for effectively making that idea “a no-starter” though.
But conservative guest host Lindsey Granger, a gun owner herself, then told the story of a man in Connecticut who built his own AR-15 after his neighbor was hit by a home invasion, in which his family was killed. In the state, it is illegal to own an assault weapon, but according to Granger, there are rules that allow residents to build them. So, the man built the weapon and has it solely to protect his family.
“He is a Black man, it’s odd. Most AR-15 owners are former military, 35+ and married. That’s all I’m saying is that they’re not just crazy people,” Granger added.
Granger did not specify when this incident was, but in 2019, Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont passed two laws banning “ghost guns.” Ghost guns are firearms that don’t have serial numbers, generally because they’re sold in pieces and can be assembled at home. But in response, Behar jumped in with her hypothesis.
“Here’s the thing, once Black people get guns in this country, the gun laws will change. Trust me,” Behar said.
At that, Granger seemed stunned into silence. But host Sunny Hostin jumped in to support Behar, noting that “that’s what happened with the Black Panthers. She’s right.”
Indeed, the Black Panthers did spark gun reform back in 1967, after members protested on the steps of the California statehouse while armed. That protest was a driving factor in passing the Mulford Act, which banned the open carry of loaded firearms.
Once she gathered herself a bit, Granger attempted to argue that Black people do own guns, and increasingly so, but Whoopi Goldberg cut the argument off. Elsewhere in the discussion, Granger argued that at least some change has already been made.
“In Buffalo, that shooter was charged with a terrorism charge. So that is a big deal to me,” she said. “So that’s making change, because we’re recognizing that this is a terrorist, and I agree that he is.”
