Carolyn McCarthy, a former US lawmaker who ran for Congress as a gun control crusade in 1996 after mass shootings on a New York commuter train killed her husband and seriously injured her son. She was 81 years old.
News of her death were shared Thursday by several elected officials from her hometown of Long Island, Jay Jacobs, chairman of the New York Democratic Committee. Details regarding her death were not immediately available.
McCarthy became from political beginner to one of the nation’s leading supporters for gun control laws in the aftermath of the 1993 Long Island Railroad Massacre. However, Democrats outside New York have achieved limited success against the National Rifle Association and other Second Amendment advocates.
McCarthy announced in June 2013 that he was undergoing treatment for lung cancer. She announced her retirement in January 2014.
“Mom has dedicated her life to turning personal tragedy into a powerful mission in public service,” her son, Kevin McCarthy, survived the shooting. Newsday. “As a tireless advocate, a devoted mother, a proud grandmother and a courageous leader, she has changed countless lives. Her legacy of compassion, strength and purpose will never be forgotten.”
New York Governor Kathy Hochul oversaw the flags of all state government buildings in honor of lawmakers, flying at half the price on Friday.
“Director Carolyn McCarthy was a strong advocate for gun control and an even more intense leader,” Hochul said.
Democrat Tom Suzzi said the country has “lost a fierce champion.”
“Carolyn led her grief and loss to advocate for change and became one of the most dedicated supporters of gun violence prevention,” Szzi said in X.
She has become a go-to guest on television news shows around the country after the gun massacre, whether at Columbine High School or Sandy Hook Elementary School.
McCarthy, known as Capitol Hill’s “Gun Lady,” said she can’t stop crying after learning that her former colleague, Rep. Gabriel Guiffold, was seriously injured in the January 2011 shooting in Arizona.
“It’s like cancer in our society,” she said of gun violence. “And if we don’t do anything to stop it, it just spreads.”
In one particularly intense debate over the loophole of the 1999 cancer show, McCarthy shed tears at 1am on the floor of the house.
“I’m Irish and I shouldn’t cry in front of anyone. But I made a promise long ago. I made an appointment to my son and husband. I did my job if there was anything I could do to prevent a single family from going through what I had experienced,” she said.
“Let me go home. Let me go home,” she pleaded.
McCarthy was born in Brooklyn and grew up on Long Island. She became a nurse and later married Dennis McCarthy after meeting on the beach on Long Island. They had one son Kevin during the turbulent marriage where they divorced but settled and remarried.
McCarthy was a Republican on December 7, 1993. The gunman fired A train leaving New York City. By the time passengers tackled the shooter, six people had been killed and 19 were injured.
She jumped into politics after GOP House members voted to abolish the ban on assault weapons.
Her surprising victory inspired a television film produced by Barbra Streisand. Since his first victory in 1996, McCarthy has not seriously challenged his reelection in the Republican district just east of New York City.
Some critics described McCarthy as No. 1 MP. This is a battle she broke, pointing to interest in improving healthcare and education. But she was realistic about her legacy with gun control.
“I’ve been at peace with the fact that I’m included in my obituary.”
