Whereas this isn’t a political website per se, now we have by no means shied away from sharing the causes, issues and values which can be expensive to us as mother and father and as people. And so I might be remiss if I didn’t write about pointless gun violence and what we are able to do about it.

Firearm violence has formally grow to be the main explanation for dying for youngsters in America. That’s stunning and unconscionable.

Gun violence impacts each single household, wherever we reside, in no matter city our youngsters are pressured to endure energetic shooter drills of their school rooms–and for too many Individuals who’ve misplaced their very own family and friends members to weapons.

We’ve see so so a lot of our readers on social media sharing emotions of hopelessness, and asking simply what might be executed — if something in any respect. And so we’re sharing just a few organizations under which can be advocating for frequent sense adjustments to gun laws, and to clarify what these adjustments seem like.

Crying Dove picture at high through unicorn child, created to commemorate the youngsters of Sandy Hook, and used with permission.
This submit up to date September, 2024

Uneccesary Gun Violence: Don’t Lose Hope.

Our children shouldn’t need to develop up with statistics like this.

Right now, we’re grieving over the murders of two 14-year-old college students and two lecturers at Apalachee Excessive College in Georgia, by the hands of a 14-year-old with entry to an AR platform weapon in his residence.

It’s a minimum of the forty fifth college taking pictures in 2024.

Once I first wrote this submit in 2015, our nation had simply endured two mass shootings in San Bernardino and Savannah —  the 354th and 355th within the US that yr. I up to date this on November 6, 2017,  the day after 26 individuals have been murdered in a Texas church, and 36 days after greater than 500 individuals have been gunned down in Las Vegas. Then once more in 2018 after Parkland. Once more in after the gun-related home terrorism in El Paso and Toledo — lower than 12 hours aside. Once more in 2023 over the racist homicide of three harmless individuals in Jacksonville, Florida, by a shooter with white supremacist ideologies and a legally bought AR-15. Then time and again and once more… (Picture: @Marchforourlives)

The info on gun violence and youngsters is stunning.

When these shootings occur — as they proceed to — we alternate between outrage and grief, questioning simply form of world we’re elevating our youngsters in. Particularly when in a median yr, over 117,000 Individuals together with greater than 16,000 kids within the US are injured or killed on account of weapons.

Deaths of kids by gunshots up a staggering 50% in simply two years, and is now the primary explanation for dying for American kids.

That quantity is so excessive, it’s really lowered the common life expectancy on this nation — which ought to shock all of us.

It’s the rationale that at present, a overwhelming majority of Individuals assist frequent sense gun legal guidelines. Even when we disagree on a few of the approaches, general, gun security will not be a partisan concern. In a ballot by Fox Information, reported by Axios:

• 87% assist felony background checks
• 77% assist 30-day ready intervals for gun purchases.
• 81% assist elevating the authorized age to purchase weapons to 21
• 80% assist requiring psychological well being checks for all gun purchasers
• 61% of voters assist banning assault rifles and semi-automatic weapons.

So let’s be a part of forces and get to work.

So what does frequent sense gun regulation seem like?

If you wish to assist particular initiatives, listed here are simply a few of the laws, legal guidelines, and insurance policies that gun security advocates are preventing for.

Georgia, the place the latest taking pictures happened, is a state with no background checks, no minimal age to buy rifles, no legal guidelines relating to secure gun storage, no required firearm registration, no requirement for gun proprietor licenses, and no permits required for hid or open carry.

Widespread sense gun laws usually are not unreasonable–which is why they’re referred to as “frequent sense,” and why poliicies like common background checks are supported by the majoriity of Individuals, throughout the political spectrum. Listed below are a few of the priorities:

• Mandating background checks for all gun purchases, universally, throughout all 50 states
• Protecting weapons out of the arms of these with felony information, harmful histories, and specifically these with a historical past of home abuse, by instituting crimson flag legal guidelines/excessive threat legal guidelines — presently adopted by solely 21 states and D.C.
• Stopping gun purchases by these with identified psychological diseases who could current a hazard to themselves or others
• Enacting the Disarm Hate Act to maintain weapons out of the arms of these convicted of hate crimes.
• Mandating the secure storage of weapons to stop household fireplace and entry to kids
• Repealing “shoot first” legal guidelines, which has not been confirmed to stop violent crime, however has been confirmed to escalate violence.
• Closing the gun present loophole in addition to loopholes that presently enable people on the terrorist watch listing to buy weapons.
• Mandating reporting on misplaced or stolen weapons.
• Strengthening hid carry legal guidelines and laws on silencers
• Regulating “ghost weapons” nationwide, which might be constructed at residence from kits, and used untraceably and with out licensing
• Implementing the provisions within the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act that cuts down on unlawful gun trafficking
• Banning high-capacity magazines, a few of which may maintain as much as 100 rounds of ammunition and are designed particularly for killing as many individuals as attainable in a brief interval.
• Mandating permits for hid carry
• Persevering with to earmark federal funding for gun violence analysis by way of the CDC and NiH, to deal with it as the general public well being concern that it’s.

Additionally, we have to take a tough have a look at why we skinny okay civilians want unfettered entry to military-style assault weapons and high-ammunition clips within the first place. (Above: An illustration from Nikkolas Smith’s The Artivist)

Organizations Doing Impactful Work to Scale back Gun Violence: Observe Them, Assist Them, Amplify Them

As at all times, we remind you to search for the helpers. However you’re an grownup. It’s not sufficient. You might want to discover the helpers, assist them, give cash, give time. In different phrases, be the helper. 

Take have a look at the work of those organizations and discover power in a likeminded neighborhood. Not all of them could also be best for you to assist, however maybe one is. (Picture: @Marchforourlives DC chapter)

Everytown for Gun Security is a union of the bipartisan group Mayors Towards Unlawful Weapons (co-founded by former NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg and former Boston Mayor Thomas Menino) plus Mothers Demand Motion for Gun Sense in America, a nonpartisan group mobilizing moms on the neighborhood stage. They’re a vocal presence on social media (as are the members @momsdemand) and have had monumental affect within the combat for gun reform in a brief time frame.

Mothers Demand Motion deserves their very own recognition since we first wrote this submit. Based by powerhouse mother of 5 Shannon Watts, there may be now a chapter in all 50 states to mobilize extra grassroots public security measures. They’ve a superb useful resource heart for more information on their website, and you’ll obtain their Demand Motion volunteer app (iOS, Android) to get entangled.

They’ve been extremely impactful at altering legislation on the native and state ranges, with focuses on points like accountable gun storage, disarming home abusers, retaining faculties safer, and updating background checks. In actual fact, each time I’m feeling hopeless, I have a look at their rising listing of gun sense victories, which is wildly spectacular.

College students Demand Motion is one other offshoot of Everytown, partaking younger activists to assist finish gun violence in our communities. With our personal kids rising up within the midst of a gun violence disaster, they encourage college students to get entangled by organizing and beginning chapters in their very own faculties, universities, and neighborhood facilities.

Brady United (Previously, The Brady Marketing campaign to Forestall Gun Violence) was began by Sarah Brady and the late James Brady, former press secretary to Ronald Reagan, who was critically wounded in an assassination try on the President. Their goal is to cut back US gun violence 25% by 2025, with particular marketing campaign initiatives together with educating accountable gun house owners about security at residence, increasing background checks, ending household fireplace, closing unregulated on-line gun purchases, and mobilizing younger individuals within the combat towards gun violence.

Giffords.Org (previously Giffords Braveness) was based by Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and her husband, retired Navy Captain, astronaut , and present U.S. Senator from Arizona, Mark Kelly. The group works to cut back gun violence and to assist lawmakers who assist accountable insurance policies, by way of nationwide coalitions made up of a formidable listing of veterans, legislation enforcement officers, religion leaders, educators, mother and father, and accountable gun house owners. The Giffords Legislation Middle helps to analysis insurance policies that can inform efficient legal guidelines to maintain extra Individuals secure.

Giffords Veterans Coalition mobilizes America’s service members to handle the gun violence epidemic.They know firsthand that weapons of conflict don’t belong in properties and communities. Not solely is that this group taking over the gun violence general, however the growing numbers of suicide by gun; on common, 17 to twenty veterans die by suicide every day, roughly 2/3 of them utilizing a firearms.

March for Our Lives was based within the days after the taking pictures in Parkland, FL, by the scholars of Marjory Stoneman Douglas Excessive College. They’re activating younger individuals to advocate for frequent sense gun reform partially by holding voter registration drives and supporting gun-sense candidates. They’re additionally working to fund gun violence analysis and intervention applications, eliminating the ATF’s oversight restrictions, disarming home abusers, pushing for common background checks, advocating for secure gun storage and necessary theft reporting and extra. (Picture above)

Change the Ref is devoted to empowering youth activists to grow to be the following technology of elected leaders. It was based by Manuel and Patricia Oliver, mother and father of Joaquin “Guac” Oliver, who was one of many 17 who died within the Parkland taking pictures. Their advocacy techniques mix the usage of city artwork, inventive non-violent techniques, schooling and disruption, making them a really interesting group for teen activists. Their  Instagram feed provides a very good snapshot of how they’re placing artwork and creativity to good use.

Sandy Hook Promise is a nationwide nonprofit particularly targeted on gun violence in faculties. It was based and stays led by a number of relations whose family members have been killed at Sandy Hook Elementary College in 2012.  They’re empowering youth to “know the indicators,” and dealing to unite all individuals who worth the safety of kids, by way of significant actions in faculties, properties, and communities to stop gun violence and cease the tragic lack of life.

The Newtown Basis was based within the wake of Sandy Hook, to present consolation, schooling, scholarship, assist and sources to these impacted by gun violence in America. Their objective is to assist all American communities transfer ahead collectively to create a optimistic cultural change in the direction of a extra peaceable, much less violent future. Yearly since 2013, they’ve have sponsored nationwide vigils and remembrance occasions, together with the Nationwide Vigil for All Victims of Gun Violence

MomsRising amplifies moms’ and household voices on points that have an effect on households, together with working towards frequent sense gun security reform by way of laws. Of explicit focus: banning military-style assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.

The Hint is an unbiased, nonpartisan, nonprofit newsroom devoted to shining a lightweight on America’s gun violence disaster by way of journalism. They deal with the communities most impacted, report on attainable fixes, and collaborate with different publications, creating content material like this interactive atlas of American gun violence with knowledge gathered from Gun Violence Archive

What else you are able to do to advocate for frequent sense gun security?

Doing one thing at all times makes me really feel higher than doing nothing.

– Contact your reps within the US Congress and Senate: This hyperlink takes you to the contact data for all federal, state, and native elected officers. These are all people who’ve sworn an oath to signify your pursuits, and you’ve got the fitting to inform them what these are. You may also go to this name your Senator webpage, kind in your title, quantity and zip code, and your telephone will join robotically. Or Textual content “sufficient” to 877-877 for an automated connection.

–Right here’s what to say whenever you contact your member of congress — you possibly can even use an app, or your personal texting app whenever you register with Resistbot.

–Go to the Motion Plan for Ending Gun Violence, a Google Doc created by our pals at Feed Our Democracy.  You’ll discover a listing of 10 actions you possibly can take to stop gun violence, plus useful truth lists, hyperlinks and sources, organizations to observe on social media, and extra.

– Use your personal social media feeds to let individuals know you care. It’s free, and also you’re most likely in your social apps anyway. Merely following and amplifying the feeds of the organizations above and different gun security activists is a simple and fast option to broaden their attain and construct a essential mass towards smart laws.