In the aftermath of the school shooting in Parkland, Florida, former Phoenix Suns star and two-time NBA MVP Steve Nash added his voice to the debate about the place of guns in the United States.
In a letter in The Players' Tribune called "We Are in This Together," Nash said he fears for the safety of children, including his own, if measures aren't taken to limit the purchase of guns in America.
"Living through yet another mass shooting, and losing those 17 people … it left me heartbroken. Heartbroken for those who lost their lives. Heartbroken for their families that have to pick up the pieces. Heartbroken for the victims who came before them. And heartbroken at the realization that, if things don’t change, there will be an endless stream of tragedy to follow," Nash wrote.
"I’m angry. Innocent people are dying senselessly in a country that has so much to offer the world. Parents are losing their kids … kids are losing their parents … people are waking up one morning, expecting a normal day — and then never seeing another."
Nash listed a number of statistics to back his belief that gun control legislation -- including expanded background checks and regulation of semi-automatic weapons -- will help prevent shootings such as the one in Parkland.
"My point here is not to drive us apart. It’s to ask you, How can we come together on this issue? Can we agree that there’s too much death, too much violence, too much loss? Can we come together and meet in the middle, as soon as possible, to save as many lives as possible?" Nash wrote.
"I know we can find some common ground -- and I know that that’s where we’ll have to meet if we want to leave this continuous cycle of violence and death in the past."
Nash has been outspoken on a number of political topics. He came out against Arizona's SB 1070 legislation in 2010, and he was a vocal supporter of President Obama. In August, Nash posted a strongly worded, profane tweet about President Trump and white supremacists.
