Showing Up for Gun Control Reform

Every day seems to bring more news of a mass shooting–Buffalo, Uvalde, Tulsa, and Ames. That’s in just the last two weeks, and it just mentions the incidents that make “breaking news”.

Again and again, lives are tragically cut short in these mass shootings, almost always in places—hospitals, schools, grocery stores, workplaces, entertainment venues, places of worship—where people should be safely conducting their everyday lives. The common element is easy access to high-powered guns that can quickly murder large numbers of people. It is scary and heartrending.

The shooting in Ames, Iowa brought the count of mass shootings in 2022 to a total of 234. That doesn’t include the gun violence that happens all across the country every day: a shooting at a cemetery in Racine, Wisconsin; a small boy killed on vacation by someone taking random potshots at cars; people killed in drive-bys; domestic violence; gun accidents; and through suicide.

It’s tempting to feel hopeless, but we can and will work to stop the violence.

Yesterday President Joe Biden called on Congress to act. He identified a list of important measures that can curb gun violence, including: bans on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, background checks, red flag laws, and a repeal of protections from legal liability for gun manufacturers.

Now, the American Humanist Association (AHA) is calling on you to take three actions in the coming days:

  • Contact your representatives to demand common-sense gun reform, like the measures Biden listed, through the Humanist Action Headquarters.
  • #WearOrange on June 3rd – 5th to honor the victims of gun violence and bring awareness to the need for action. Post pictures in your orange attire on social media using #WearOrange and tag the AHA on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
  • Join us at the March for Our Lives on Saturday, June 11th. In Washington, DC, we’re calling on humanists to meetat 9:30 am across from the Smithsonian Metro stop to come together, with other secular organizations, to demonstrate at the Washington Monument. We’ll bring the protest signs!

Together, we can demand an end to gun violence for all. Join us to take action and be a part of a solution.