Acting on Thoughts & Prayers
We join people across the country in mourning the tragic mass shooting in Las Vegas on Sunday night that took the lives of 58 people and injured more than 500. We condemn this act of domestic terrorism. Many have been building a grassroots effort to address the epidemic of gun violence and the influence of the gun industry on safety laws in America. What is difficult is that we are not seeing changes, particularly when there is clear and overwhelming support. Most Americans are dissatisfied with current laws and policies on guns, according to a 2016 Gallup poll.
When 307 (87%) of the current members of Congress have received a combined $3.5 million from the NRA, it is clear that they do not serve the will of the people whom elected them. When gun industry stock rises following a mass shooting, it is clear corporations are profiting off of people’s fears. When doctors, nurses, and hospitals are ill-equipped to treat gun victims because of a federal ban on firearms research (thanks to the gun lobby), it is clear health care is not a priority for some elected leaders.
We must move our thoughts and prayers into action and real solutions to prevent the next tragedy from taking away someone’s mother, father, son, or daughter. We must create a grassroots demand to reduce the amount of monied interests in our governance and elections while expanding Voting Rights.
We call upon our elected leaders and communities to come together to not only support those who lost loved ones but to address gun violence across our country. Let’s break our silos to demand democracy reforms that shift our political landscape over the long haul. Winning bans on assault weapons, regulating the use of silencers, and creating universal background checks for firearms, means moving elected officials to act on the will of the people.
Every American deserves to live free from violence. We must say “No more!” and show elected leaders that there is a grassroots demand for common sense solutions to stop the violence. This is our democracy.
