Father of Parkland Mass Shooting Victim Escorted Out of Trump's SOTU Address

Trump was saying some dumb sh*t about guns when Fred Guttenberg spoke out, ultimately resulting in his removal.

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Image via Getty/Mark Wilson

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The father of a victim in the 2018 Parkland, Florida mass shooting was escorted out of Tuesday's State of the Union address.

Fred Guttenberg, whose 14-year-old daughter Jaime was among the 17 people killed in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School attack, later said on Twitter that he spoke out in protest after being forced to listen to Trump's "lies" about the Second Amendment.

(1,2) Tonight was a rough night. I disrupted the State Of The Union and was detained because I let my emotions get the best of me. I simply want to be able to deal with the reality of gun violence and not have to listen to the lies about the 2A as happened tonight.

— Fred Guttenberg (@fred_guttenberg) February 5, 2020

(2,2) That said, I should not have yelled out. I am thankful for the overwhelming support that I am receiving. However, I do owe my family and friends an apology. I have tried to conduct myself with dignity throughout this process and I will do better as I pursue gun safety.

— Fred Guttenberg (@fred_guttenberg) February 5, 2020

Guttenberg was escorted out of the balcony gallery of the U.S. House of Representatives chamber near the end of Big Dumb Motherfucker's speech, per the Miami Herald. He had been invited to attend the speech by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who made headlines the same night for later ripping up a copy of the speech in question.

Guttenberg has turned to gun safety activism since the Parkland shooting. Most notably, he has been pushing for lawmakers to throw their support behind "Jaime's law," which would require background checks on bullet purchases.

Following his removal from Tuesday's SOTU address, many have taken to Twitter behind the #ImWithFred hashtag to show their support for his continued efforts:

#ImWithFred . Retweet. Make it trend. Follow @fred_guttenberg. Help him in his heroic fight to save innocent lives.

— Bradley Whitford (@BradleyWhitford) February 5, 2020

The courage exhibited by @fred_guttenberg tonight was heartbreaking. He protested Trump at the State of the Union after his daughter was murdered at Parkland and Trump did next-to-nothing to finally enact gun reform in this country. And he was kicked out.#ImWithFred

— Charlotte Clymer 🇺🇦 (@cmclymer) February 5, 2020

Watching Trump celebrate the mounting death toll from preventable violence sent me over the edge too.#ImWithFred

We need #GunReformNOW!pic.twitter.com/qYoc1MNCTy

— Grant Stern (@grantstern) February 5, 2020

Let's be clear, @fred_guttenberg is a hero. Vote Democratic and let's take on the NRA. #ImWithFred https://t.co/6FcVEz1aok

— HawaiiDelilah™ 🟦 (@HawaiiDelilah) February 5, 2020

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