How To Pass Gun Legislation Written by Lisa Wirthman On March 20, the day her gun control bills were signed into law, Colorado Representative Rhonda Fields could only feel numb. Her colleague, Colorado Prisons Chief Tom Clements, had been shot and killed by a former inmate at the front door of his home just the night before. “I felt really insignificant,” she says. “I’m still not saving lives at the level that I want … [Read more...]
This is a story about a father’s love for his son. It is a story of one victim of gun violence in a nation infested with an epidemic of gun violence. I hope [my] book provides an understanding of what it’s like to be in the middle of such a high-profile tragedy. I hope it convinces more people to become active in changing our gun laws and our social attitudes towards guns. I hope it provides a helpful glimpse of my experience to others … [Read more...]
I’m tired of feeling hopeless, as though we’ve all given up, especially our lawmakers. Our differences may be great but that is no excuse to simply not try. — Jamie Haynes, Virginia Tech. Class Of 2007 Virginia Tech students passed the flame of a memorial candle during a vigil Monday night. It was one of several remembrance events held on the Blacksburg campus in honor of the 32 students and faculty members slain on April 16, … [Read more...]
Virginia mother of three Lori Haas is a mom on a mission. Her daughter Emily was shot twice in the head, but survived the mass shooting at Virginia Tech. Haas will not rest until hearts—and laws—have changed. The Phone Call It was April 16, 2007. Emily Haas was in French class in Norris Hall. A gunman had chained the doors of the building and had begun killing students and professors. Gunman Seung-Hui Cho burst into Emily’s class … [Read more...]
You name it, Momma was right there. We have so much invested in our sons’ lives to give them a good life full of love. No one can put a price on a child, they are priceless to their parents. On February 25, 2012, Brett Wittner, age 14, was shot in the back of the head with a .22 long rifle. He had gone to a sleepover, and the gathering moved to someone else’s house. It was at this house that things went tragically wrong. Loaded guns … [Read more...]
Christina-Taylor was fearless. She wanted to change the world. Christina-Taylor said she would be a star someday. She said that up until she passed. I didn’t want it to be like this. She wanted to be the first female major league baseball player or the president. I would ask, “Do you mean first lady?” And she would say, “No, the president.” Christina-Taylor Green, age 9, was a dancer, an artist, a little league player, and a … [Read more...]
Limits on types of weapons and ammunition available to the public at large exist and are justified by the government's power to protect its citizens from criminal activity. We regulate the chaos that results from yelling "fire" in a crowded theatre; the First Amendment is not unqualified. Surely the Second Amendment can be qualified in an effort to prevent 150 bullets from taking 26 lives. Janine Fierberg is the Moms Demand Action chapter … [Read more...]
Chicago mom Genetta Jackson is tired of seeing her community—and her own family—ripped apart by guns. Chicago’s headlines have captured and horrified the nation on a repeated basis. High school honor student Hadiya Pendleton was gunned down at random days after performing in President Obama’s Inaugural Parade. Six-month-old Jonylah Watkins took five bullets and was killed during a diaper change. Jackson’s anger over this raging sea of … [Read more...]
I certainly don't think that the chaos and massacres are what our forefathers had in mind when they crafted the Second Amendment. Dr. Thelma White, a retired child psychologist, lived through the heart-pounding, knee-buckling moments when she learned a shooting had occurred at her grandchild’s school. Caring for children has been White’s career and passion. After her granddaughter witnessed the shooting at her school, White drew on … [Read more...]
A routine trip to the neighborhood barbershop ended the life of a young father. Sheldon Innocent wanted a trim to look nice in his upcoming family portrait—a portrait scheduled to mark the major milestone of his baby boy’s first birthday. An escaped convict burst into the barbershop and opened fire, killing Sheldon. His grandmother, Martha Fulda, is now speaking out for a life well lived, and one ended far too early. A Fateful Trip to the … [Read more...]
Linda Rusconi was gearing up for the holidays like so many other people when her family’s world was turned upside down. One minute, Rusconi was at her holiday office party, and the next, she was identifying her sister’s body. Rusconi’s sister, 29-year-old Tara Woods, had been visiting a club on December 14, 2005, with several other people. She was playing pool when armed robbers stormed the building. They began to shoot patrons execution … [Read more...]
We have buried too many children for anyone to use the Constitution to justify our failure to reduce this continuing assault. — Saundra Hopkins, Oregon By Saundra Hopkins I was raised in Idaho in a family that hunted. Growing up in Wisconsin, my husband hunted with his family. We own a hunting rifle. In 2002, my husband, my daughter and I were the victims of a shooting incident in Irian Jaya, Indonesia. We were teaching in a … [Read more...]
Sandy Anglin Phillips was witnessing a metamorphosis in the summer of 2012. Her daughter, Jessica Redfield Ghawi, was spreading her wings—confidently. The blossoming young woman had discovered her passion, and was ready to take flight into the brilliant and promising skies of a new career. On July 20, 2012, her flight ended abruptly, loudly, and unnaturally. Ghawi was among the 12 souls lost when a man waged war on theater patrons enjoying … [Read more...]
The police and sheriff refuse to take our calls or discuss our son’s death with us. We sometimes run into the other boy’s family in our small town. They seem to be moving on with life, but we can’t. — Veronica Taylor On December 29th, 2010, my world stopped and my heart skipped many beats. My only son, my husband’s only biological child, my beloved Robert Harvell Taylor III, forever 13, was shot in the face and killed by a … [Read more...]
I am interested in safety for all, especially our future, where if something is not done, will be diminished by the senseless acts of random and/or premeditated violence, by guns. — Barbara Barbara’s son had dreams of becoming a singer. A bullet fired into a crowd paralyzed his vocal chords, ending that dream—and nearly his life. Barbara’s son was a junior at a university in Virginia, when he was shot on August 4, 2011. He was … [Read more...]
Despite [a] documented history of mental illness, both were able to legally purchase and keep firearms. Both are now dead. — Kim Marlow At 7:58 am, on May 4, 2011, at my home in Wisconsin, I woke up - suddenly wide awake - despite being unable to fall asleep until after 3am. By the time I walked from my bedroom, down the hall and through my living room, my phone rang from the kitchen counter, just as I was next to it. It was exactly 8 am. … [Read more...]
“I squeezed my body and got ready to be shot.” — Kim Russell, National Director of Communications, Moms Demand Action Shooting survivor Kim Russell had finally recovered from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. On December 14, 2012, her symptoms raged back to the surface. When 20 first graders and six educators were gunned down in their school in Newtown, Connecticut, Russell’s palms became sweaty, her mouth became bone dry, and a … [Read more...]
His friend pulled the trigger. I was told his death was swift and peaceful. I wept as I was forbidden to hold him that day. — Jodi Sandoval, Noah's mom By Jodi Sandoval, Noah's mom Nearly 8 months after the death of my 14 year-old son, Noah, the micro-world in which I knew and lived with my 5 children has been leveled and utterly devastated. The reality of living a post-Noah existence is overwhelming and strange. Surreal. I … [Read more...]
On February 12 and 13, Colorado legislators held public hearings to discuss four proposed pieces of gun control legislation. HB13-1224 would ban magazines that hold more than ten rounds. HB13-1229 would prohibit the private transfer of firearms. HB13-1226 would make it illegal to carry a concealed firearm on a college or university campus. HB13-1228 would instate a fee for a background check when making a gun purchase. Rose Relaford, a … [Read more...]
Ron and Kim Odom attend a Congressional Subcommittee Hearing on Gun Violence on Feb. 12, 2013. Kim Odom’s son loved playing basketball with friends. After a pickup game on October 4, 2007, her beloved Steven was just steps from the safety of his living room when a gang member’s bullet ended his young life. Steven was only 13. Today, One Million Moms for Gun Control/Maryland Chapter Volunteer Erin Sharkey Gormley met Kim Odom and her … [Read more...]
We suffered not only from the cruelty of killers, but also from the indifference of bystanders. I believe that a person who is indifferent to the suffering of others is complicit in the crime. And that I cannot allow, at least not for myself. — Holocaust survivor Elie Weisel By Hollye Dexter In the summer of 1978, my seven-year-old brother Christopher was shot in the head by a deranged neighbor. He was a first grader, a skinny little … [Read more...]
It was 1981 and I was 27 years old. My parents, Wilbur and Lenora Dietsche, owned a recreational vehicle (RV) dealership, a mobile home park, (which my dad had built himself) and an RV campground in northern Wisconsin. I was living in North Carolina. My parents had just visited me for the weekend. The day after they returned home, they were killed, along with my 22-year-old brother and his 22-year-old friend. A resident of the mobile home … [Read more...]
We need to stand up and fight for the future of our children and our country. Common sense gun laws must be put in to action immediately. No one is immune to gun violence, I learned first hand. — Dorothy Barrick, Mother, Model, Survivor By Dorothy Barrick I was shot in 1989. I was 17 years old and was starting my career as a model in New York City. What started out as a night out dancing, ended with me getting shot in my right foot … [Read more...]
I am an ecologist and I am a mother - I am not an activist... Now I find myself researching gun control, emailing my elected officials, and putting out feelers to figure out how I, as an individual, can make a difference. — Anne Priest, Stepdaughter of Sandy Hook's Heroic Principal Anne’s Story The afternoon of Friday, December 14th, 2012 was a typical afternoon. I was at home in the UK trying to set up some kind of international … [Read more...]
I will not have my freedom to move about during the course of my day marred by someone's need to possess or carry a weapon of war Not this time. Not anymore. — Anne Tortora, Teacher, One Million Moms for Gun Control When people ask why I am so militant in my attitude towards the mission of OMMFGC, I tell them that it's a complex answer. My immediate reaction to the Sandy Hook massacres was one that was shared by educators around … [Read more...]
