The father of a victim killed in the Parkland school shooting interrupted President Joe Biden during a White House speech about gun legislation.
On Monday, the 79-year-old President was delivering a speech at the White House on the bipartisan gun control law passed last month, with survivors and family members of mass shooting victims in attendance.
During his speech, Biden was unexpectedly cut off by Manuel Oliver, whose son, Joaquin Oliver, was among the 17 people killed in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School massacre in 2018.
"We can make meaningful progress on dealing with gun violence because make no mistake…" Biden said before the interruption.
Biden then continued: "Sit down, you’ll hear what I have to say if you think…" before stopping to hear clearly what Oliver was saying in the crowd.
Watch the video below:"I’ve been trying to tell you this for years, for years," said Oliver, who seemed to be saying that the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which is a bill that includes mental health services, school security, and crisis intervention programs, does not go far enough.
"Let him talk. Let him talk," Biden responded as Oliver was about to be escorted away, "Because make no mistake about it, this legislation is real progress but more has to be done."
The father was eventually removed of the event by White House personnel and spoke to Local 10 D.C. Bureau Chief Ben Kennedy about why he interrupted Biden.
"I thought it was the right moment to repeat to the president what we need," Oliver explained, adding that the nation needs a national office for gun violence prevention.
Ahead of the White House event, Oliver tweeted: "The word CELEBRATION has no space in a society that saw 19 kids massacred just a month ago."
Oliver also appeared on CNN to criticize the use of the word 'celebration' for the White House event, saying: "It’s like we’re going to a party, to a wedding today, you know, we all received invitations".
"Meanwhile, you can see these mothers in Uvalde that just saw how their kids were massacred inside a school," Oliver continued.
"This is part of a process and there was no reason for this event to be called as it’s called right now. We are celebrating and getting together in the White House - there’s no space for that word," he added.
Oliver has been actively campaigning against gun violence since the death of his son. He has also previously criticized the Biden administration for not doing enough to respond to mass shootings.
Earlier this year, he climbed a 150-foot crane near the White House to mark four years since the Parkland shooting and to bring awareness to gun violence.
In a video recorded high above the street, Oliver said: "The whole world will listen to Joaquin today. He has a very important message. I asked for a meeting with Joe Biden a month ago. Never got that meeting."
Biden reiterated in his speech that more legislative action concerning gun violence must be taken, but that the law is "an important start".
"If this law had been in place years ago, even this last year, lives would have been saved," he said, adding, "It matters, it matters, but it’s not enough."