The Georgia chapters of Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action, part of Everytown for Gun Safety’s volunteer networks, today applauded Athens Mayor Kelly Girtz, a member of Mayors Against Illegal Guns, and the Athens City Council for passing a resolution in strong support of any legislation that would repeal Georgia’s so-called “Stand Your Ground” law.
“Stand Your Ground laws are racist, dangerous, and have no place in our state,”said Emma Jones, a volunteer leader with the Athens local group of Georgia Moms Demand Action. “We’re grateful that our leaders in Athens have taken action in support of this critical legislation, and we will continue to fight until it is passed in the state.”
In January, Savannah Mayor Van Johnson and the Savannah City Council passed a similar resolution. Last session, the mayors of Atlanta, Athens, Savannah, Augusta and six other cities in Georgia sent an open letter to members of the Georgia legislature, urging them to repeal the law. See the letter and full list of signers, first reported by the Atlanta Journal Constitution, here.
What to know about so-called “Stand Your Ground”:
- Georgia’s “Stand Your Ground” law encourages armed vigilantism and allows a person to kill another person in public even if the shooter could have safely walked away from danger. “Stand Your Ground” laws are associated with increases in homicide rates translating to more than 150 additional gun deaths each month nationwide. “Stand Your Ground” laws are also associated with an increase in firearm injuries, resulting in emergency room visits and hospitalizations.
- So-called “Stand Your Ground” laws are inherently dangerous for everyone, but have a particularly harmful impact on people of color. In Stand Your Ground states, homicides in which white shooters kill Black victims are deemed justifiable five times more frequently than when the situation is reversed.
To date, more than 2,100 Georgians have signed Everytown’s petition calling on lawmakers to repeal Stand Your Ground legislation. More information about Stand Your Ground laws is available here.