ATLANTA — Editor's note: The video above is from a rally where the congresswoman spoke earlier this year.
It's been a decade since Georgia Congresswoman Lucy McBath lost her son to gun violence. On Wednesday, she took to Twitter to write a note to him.
Jordan Davis was shot and killed on Nov. 23, 2012, in Jacksonville, Florida; he was 17 years old. It was a Friday night, and a man named Michael Dunn pulled up next to Davis and complained about the loud rap music coming from the teen's vehicle. After a few words were exchanged, Dunn opened fire, killing Davis. Dunn was convicted on October 1, 2014, and sentenced to life behind bars.
Following her teen son's death, McBath became an activist in the fight against gun violence. She then ran for a seat in congress, winning in 2018, and most recently won another term in the Georgia midterms elections on Nov. 8. And earlier this year, McBath spoke at the March For Our Lives rally to demand change in the fight against gun violence.
Read her full statement below or on Twitter:
Dear Jordan,
They say that time heals all wounds, but for parents, losing your child is like losing a part of your heart, a part of your soul.
It’s been a decade since I last heard your laugh, and not a day goes by where I don’t daydream about hearing you call for me again.
I wanted to watch you grow up and graduate, fall in love, and start a family of your own.
That's why I made sure the fight for your justice wasn’t left behind in the courtroom, because Justice will be the day no parent ever has to bury their child again.
All of our memories together and every bit of love in my heart for you as a mother is why I must carry on, despite those that oppose a safer world for our children.
And that’s why standing there on the steps to the courthouse, I made a promise to you, to our family, and to the community that raised you, that I would do everything in my power to keep them safe, to keep them healthy, and to fight to prevent our tragedy from reaching others.
Throughout these years, I thought I was the one teaching you, but as I look back more and more, it was you teaching me this entire time—teaching me how to continue the work that God has ordained for our family.
Jordan, thank you for watching out for your mom. Thank you for being on this mission with me, every day, to keep our communities safe.
I always thought you’d be a community advocate or organizer one day, and I couldn’t have asked for a better guardian angel to keep pushing me forward.
Jordan, one day we’ll all be united again, but until then, God’s not through with me. I can’t wait to see where He takes our family.
Forever, your mom,
Lucy