We have had far too many moments of silence since Sandy Hook. Our children and our families deserve real action and change to stop the epidemic of gun violence in our country. We must demand this action from our elected officials, and we must take action in our own communities.
More and more of our neighbors are uniting to bring the change we need. The phones in Congress are ringing off the hook, rallies are growing in numbers and press events are being held in capitals across the country. The movement is growing, and we must keep growing it.
Gun violence prevention is not a partisan issue. Gun violence impacts us all. When we live in a country where we must fear sending our children to school or the movies, we can no longer hide behind the political status quo.
Orlando marked the deadliest mass shooting our nation has seen. Since this tragedy, we have seen the nation come together in powerful ways, with members of both parties stepping up to support common sense gun violence prevention legislation. Surely, we can all agree that the most dangerous people amongst us, including terrorists, should not have access to firearms.
There is reason to have hope that we can prevent gun violence before it happens. We can do this through sensible gun safety laws and programs in our schools and communities that help us identify the signs and signals, and intervene before a shooting happens.
There are simple actions you can take to keep this hope alive and bring the change we need. Call on your state’s congressional leaders to support gun violence prevention legislation to keep guns out of dangerous hands. Specifically, call the Capitol Hill switchboard at 202-224-3121 and ask for your senators or representative. Attend the hundreds of local rallies, marches and community and press events taking place around the country and in your backyard. Spread the word, through letters like this one, word of mouth and social media, about the need for common-sense gun reform. Finally, learn about Sandy Hook Promise’s free violence prevention programs, which can be implemented in our schools and communities. More information can be found at www.sandyhookpromise.org.
With your help, we can make history. Congress is listening, and is closer than ever to passing meaningful legislation that can help prevent gun violence before it happens. Every effort—no matter how seemingly small—makes a difference and is part of the cumulative movement of Sandy Hook Promise and other concerned citizens across the country who want to see an end to gun violence.
—Laurie K. Gibbons
