Waltham Republican City Committee discusses state gun legislation, party representation at annual ice cream social

The Waltham Republican City Committee held its annual ice cream social at Pizzi Farm Market and Ice Cream Tuesday evening.

The event featured speaker Toby Leary, a Hyannis-based gun store owner and chairman of the Civil Rights Coalition, a Massachusetts ballot committee proposing the repeal of the state’s Chapter 135 of the Acts of 2024 signed by Gov. Maura Healey in July 2024.

Chapter 135, or An Act Modernizing Firearm Laws, made changes to existing legislation, including expanding risk protection order requests, banning untraceable “ghost guns,” updating license and age restrictions, as well as increased penalties for violations and the introduction of a publicly accessible firearm database.

Speaking at events like this is a way to educate the public about firearm legislation as part of an awareness campaign, according to Leary.

“The courts, the executive branch, and the legislature have all conspired together to degrade or defraud the people of this state of their constitutional rights,” Leary said. “We’re out here just sounding the alarm that ‘Hey, they’re doing what they don’t have a privilege to do.’”

Leary also spoke about the expanded licensing process, mentioning deterrence to both prospective gun owners and current owners looking to renew their licenses.

“The people who are trying to play by the rules and get swept up in this whack-a-mole, checkerboard system of laws, they become a prohibited person and their lives are ruined,” Leary said. “That doesn’t make us safer.”

With 2,788 active firearm licenses as of July 1, 2025, Waltham ranks 54th out of 353 municipalities in the state.

One of these active licenses belongs to former city councilor at-large and WRCC member Sally Collura. 

The City Committee, according to Collura, is a community resource providing opportunities to network and to learn from discussions like the one with Leary.

“It’s important to get people out of their shell and engage with one another and listen to how other people feel, vent their own issues in the city, whether they’re Republican, Democrat or Independent,” Collura said.

Attendees shared their concern for Republican representation both in the city and state.

For WRCC chairman Justin Cusano, however, holding these kinds of events is a way to represent.

“We kind of have a one-party city, so just a little bit of diversity goes a long way,” Cusano said.

2024 3rd Middlesex District Republican state committeeman and former WRCC chairman Jim Dixon shared a similar sentiment.

Many people are “closeted Republicans” and don’t feel comfortable coming to WRCC events, according to Dixon.

“Bias is inherent,” Dixon said, “but we’re all Americans and all act in pursuit of equality as citizens.”

Leary ended the evening with a reminder about the upcoming vote to repeal An Act Modernizing Firearm Laws on next year’s ballot.

“If the Second Amendment falls, the rest fall right behind them,” Leary said. “There’s no chance any other right survives after.”