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Paterson Mayor, Moms Demand Action, Students Demand Action Respond to Mass Shooting in Paterson, New Jersey

July 8, 2020

Mayor Sayegh and the New Jersey chapters of Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action, both part of Everytown for Gun Safety’s grassroots network, released the following statements in response to a mass shooting in Paterson, New Jersey where four people were shot and killed and three others were wounded Tuesday night.

“This shooting has sent shockwaves throughout the entire community,” said Paterson Mayor Andre Sayegh, member of Mayors Against Illegal Guns. “Common-sense gun safety is a matter of life and death, and Moms Demand Action has been a valuable partner in making that a reality. Until we can say every member of our community is safe from gun violence, there’s more work to be done.”

“Our hearts break for the families affected by this senseless violence,” said Alicia Smith, a volunteer with the New Jersey chapter of Moms Demand Action from Passaic County. “Complacency is not an option, and we vow to fight for solutions that will address the root causes of gun violence and save lives.”

Research by Everytown for Gun Safety shows that the mass shooting in Paterson was at least the 234th mass shooting since January 2009. It’s at least the second mass shooting reported in the past week, after four people were shot and killed, and another four were wounded on Saturday in Chicago. Every day in the U.S. on average, more than 100 people are killed with guns, and hundreds more are wounded – the majority of which do not take place during mass shootings.

Everytown defines mass shootings as those in which four or more people are shot and killed, excluding the shooter. An analysis of mass shootings from 2009 to 2018 shows there were a total of 194 mass shootings, which left 1,121 people dead and an additional 836 people wounded.

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