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Defenders of the right to bear arms are protesting the state government’s proposed gun control regulation at Virginia’s State Capitol in Richmond on Monday, January 20. The authorities fear violence with some protesters expected to bring weapons.
Democratic Governor Ralph Northam, who turned the state’s government blue in November for the first time since 1993, put forward a series of proposals in the State Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday.
The regulations include limiting citizens to one handgun purchase per month, universal background checks on gun sales, allowing localities to ban guns in some public areas, and a “red flag” bill that would allow authorities to temporarily take guns away from anyone deemed to be dangerous to themselves or others.
Ahead of the protest, Northam is reportedly considering plans to declare an emergency and ban all guns around Richmond’s Capitol, citing fears of violence similar to the deadly white nationalist rally in Charlottesville in 2017.