Performers are pulling out of the NRA Memorial Day concert scheduled for this weekend.
The singer of “American Pie,” Don McLean, was the first to announce he would not perform in Houston on Saturday.
In a statement, McLean said, “In light of the recent events in Texas, I have decided it would be disrespectful and hurtful for me to perform for the NRA at their convention in Houston this week.”
Now Larry Gatlin and Larry Stewart of Restless Heart have decided to drop out of the concert as well, Variety reports.
Gatlin wrote, “I cannot, in good conscience, perform at the NRA convention in Houston this weekend.”
While he said he supported background checks for firearms purchases, he also suggested teachers should have been “proficient in the use of firearms,” referring to the deadly school shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
The performer ended with, “I’m a 2nd Amendment guy, but the 2nd amendment should not apply to everyone.”
Stewart wrote in a statement that he wanted to “honor the victims, families, the town and our friends in the great state of Texas” by pulling out of the NRA concert.
“I’m a strong believer in the 2nd Amendment and I know the NRA is a great organization who teaches strict gun safety with a membership of law-abiding citizens who love our country,” Stewart wrote.
The NRA convention is still scheduled to begin Friday, just days after a shooter killed 21 people at an elementary school in south Texas.
Houston is about 270 miles away from Uvalde, where the shooting took place.