geoff: Finally tonight...
Following the massacre in
uvalde, golden state warriors
coach Steve Kerr used a playoffs
press conference this week to
speak out about gun violence in
America.
Coach Kerr: We've had elderly
black people killed in a
supermarket in Buffalo.
We've had Asian churchgoers
killed in southern California.
And now we have children
murdered at school.
When are we going to do
something?
Geoff: Last year, Kelly
Corrigan, host of pbs' "Tell me
more," sat down with Kerr to
talk about what's behind his
passion for this issue and what
he thinks political leaders
should be doing.
Kelly: Tell me about your dad.
Coach Kerr: Oh, man.
It's kind of hard for me to talk
about still.
>> Malcolm Kerr, president of
the American university of
Beirut, was murdered at close
range outside his campus office
by two men with a silencer
equipped pistol.
Coach Kerr: He was a wonderful
man.
Quiet, very funny, great way
with people.
He was just an amazing dad that
it was there for all four of us.
Kelly: Why do you think they
assassinated him?
Coach Kerr: He was the most
prominent American in Beirut at
that time, and it was the early
part of terrorism against
Americans in the Middle East.
So you remember the Iran hostage
situation was 1979.
The worst incident was the
bombing of the marine barracks.
I think 300 Marines were killed
in this huge truck bomb in
Beirut.
My dad, I remember he was in his
office, which was, you know, on
campus five miles away, six
miles away.
And he said he heard this
enormous blast and felt the
impact of it five miles away.
And the embassy cleared out, but
the university was still
functioning.
So my dad became one of the most
prominent Americans remaining.
And so he became a target.
I think he took that job when I
was 16.
Kelly: Mm-hmm.
Coach Kerr: You know, when
you're 16, your dad's not going
to die.
Your mom's not going to die like
everything's going to be fine.
If you've lived a life like like
I did where you're perfect
upbringing, wonderful family,
and got everything you need,
nothing's going to happen to
you.
That happens to other people,
you know?
So looking back, I sometimes I,
I think I wish I had been a
little wiser in terms of maybe
bringing all that stuff up.
Kelly: In that year, the 73
year, the bad back year, shortly
after the season, there was a
shooter who went to UCLA.
It's like half a mile from your
mom.
And then shortly after that, the
pulse shooting happened and you
made a big statement.
Do you remember it?
Coach Kerr: Yeah.
And the reason I made it is
because we had done probably
three moments of silence during
that season.
It was like every couple of
weeks were just, you know, let's
take a bow and stay silent and
not actually try to solve the
problem.
And so I just felt like, you
know, I do have a platform, I
should probably say something.
And I've been an advocate ever
since.
Because my dad died that way.
And because it's such an
enormous problem in our country,
that's become my sort of pet
project.
Kelly: Do you have hope that
there will be new legislation?
Coach Kerr: I do have hope,
mainly because of the March for
our lives kids.
There's so many young people now
who are so angry and invested.
What makes me lose hope is just
that it's a constant deal with
the senate where, you know, the
house passes hr 8, which is, you
know, background checks bill,
that over 90% of Americans want
background checks, regardless if
you're a Democrat or Republican,
90% people.
Kelly: The NRA want background
checks.
Coach Kerr: Yeah, but the senate
will not go down that path.
They won't even look at the bill
because of partisan politics.
And, you know, they put their
own private career ahead of the