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Colorado Republican Representative Lauren Boebert was called out when she attempted to deflect blame after she was caught on video throwing out a pin shaped like the green Converse shoes worn by Maite Rodriguez who tragically lost her life in last year's mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas.
The Uvalde elementary school shooting tragically claimed the lives of 21 people, most of them young children. They included Rodriguez, whose green Converse shoes became a poignant symbol of the tragedy because they were crucial in identifying her after her murder.
In response to the mass shooting and advocating for stricter gun control measures, Lives Robbed—a group formed by parents of Uvalde victims—distributed the pin along with a pamphlet to members of Congress, urging them to support the reinstatement of the assault weapons ban.
But Boebert immediately threw hers away and shook her head when called to take action against gun violence.
Days after the controversy erupted, Boebert apologized for any perception of disrespect towards a child but explained her actions by stating that she was wearing AirPods at the time and felt occupied.
She also claimed that the person who handed her the pin was someone who had approached her "aggressively" in the past during a press conference.
You can hear what she said in the video below.
Boebert said:
“I was walking, had AirPods in, tried to tell the man that I was occupied, and he continued, and as he was handing me what turned out to be a memorial pin, I recognized him as a man who came at me very aggressively just a few weeks prior during a press conference."
“He was so aggressive that he was apprehended by another member and detained by Capitol Police officers.”
"I wanted to make it very clear that I did not want to receive anything that this man had to give me, nor did I know what he was handing me."
She concluded her remarks by insisting she did not mean to disrespect Rodriguez's memory when she threw the pin away:
"If anyone thinks that I was disrespecting a child who tragically lost their lives at the hands of an evil, evil person, I want to apologize for the appearance of that."
"But that's not at all what it was. I simply didn't want to receive anything from this aggressive man who was harassing me and my office."
Boebert was swiftly criticized after her video response went viral.
Activist Elijah Pelton, who gave Boebert the pin, countered her explanation.
Pelton clarified that Boebert may have confused him with another activist named Jake Burdett, who was pushed out of a press conference by Louisiana Republican Representative Clay Higgins in May for asking questions related to Boebert's divorce.
A spokesperson for Boebert toldNewsweek that she was in fact referring to Brett Cross, whose son Uziyah was among the 19 children killed at Robb Elementary.
Video footage shows that a different man—Pelton, not Cross—had given Boebert the pin but Boebert's spokesperson said they had "no further comment" on the matter.