Joseph’s grandparents immigrated to California from Mexico to labor in tomato fields and canneries in the 1960s. Through hard work and determination, they climbed into the middle class to build opportunities for their family. Joseph’s mother struggled with addiction, so he spent most of his childhood living with his father, who raised a family of five in Riverside on a truck driver’s salary. But when Joseph came out as gay at 17, he had to move out. Though his early years were marked by hardship, trauma, and housing insecurity, Joseph excelled in school, participated in the Chicano Latino Youth Leadership Conference, and worked part-time as a dishwasher.
As a former Marine and bomb dog handler overseas, I knew the responsibility I had while wearing a badge and carrying a gun. I knew I had a responsibility to serve and protect, and that is why I am in favor of gun reform – because every parent, teacher, church parishioner, and child deserves a community that is free from gun violence.
We need common-sense solutions to tackle this epidemic and lessen the threat that all of us face. Laws like universal background checks and closing legal loopholes that allow ghost gun manufacturers to operate are just the start of basic gun safety to make sure responsible gun ownership is in place.