The third night of the Democratic National Convention opened with powerful remarks from Gabrielle Giffords, the former Arizona congresswoman who was grievously injured from a gunshot wound to the head, along with a moving montage of how Giffords painstakingly prepared for her convention speech.
Giffords, who spoke haltingly at the DNC in 2016, spoke clearly and forcefully on Wednesday night of the need to elect Democratic nominee Joe Biden, in order to implement the gun safety reforms that the former lawmaker has advocated for since her 2011 shooting. “We can let the shooting continue, or we can act. We can protect our families, our future. We can vote,” said Giffords, whose speech was interspersed with photos of her and Biden, who she said was there for her during her struggle.
In an illustration of how far she has come since nearly being killed at a Tuscon parking lot, the segment opened with Giffords playing a French horn to the tune of “My Country ‘Tis of Thee.” “I put one foot in front of another, I found one word and then I found another…. I struggle to speak, but I have not lost my voice. America needs all of us to speak,” said Giffords, speaking at a podium backlit by an American flag. “Even when you have to fight to find the words.”
