12/14 Update — Event Cancelled Due to Storm: On Saturday, Dec. 14, moms and others who support the same goals will gather at over 50 events in more than 35 states to honor the victims of the tragedy in Newtown and the thousands of Americans lost to gun violence every year. All events will include a communal bell-ringing to remember the victims and to show resolve to never again be silent about gun violence.
These events are co-sponsored by Mayors Against Illegal Guns and Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America .
In Hartford at the event starting at 2 p.m. at the Asylum Hill Congregational Church, 814 Asylum Ave., attendees will hear from Senators Blumenthal and Murphy, Senator Beth Bye, Kara Nelson Baekey, Rev. Henry Brown, Mrs. Henrietta Beckman, and Iran Nazario about the need to reduce gun violence.
Local sponsors, with whom a common goal of gun violence prevention is shared, include Step Up, Step Out at Asylum Hill Congregational Church and Mothers United Against Violence.
Bells will be rung loudly, honoring the first anniversary of the Sandy Hook tragedy with a promise to continue making noise on gun reform until change comes.
For more information, visit http://momsdemandaction.org/
Speakers will include:
- Kara Nelson Baekey, Chapter Leader, Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America
- Rev. Matthew Laney, Asylum Hill Congregational Church
- U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal
- U.S. Senator Chris Murphy
- State Senator Beth Bye
- Rev. Henry Brown, President, Mothers United Against Violence
- Mrs. Henrietta Beckman, Director, Mothers United Against Violence
- Iran Nazario, Director of Peacebuilders and Community Relations, COMPASS Youth Collaborative, Inc.
Much like Mothers Against Drunk Driving was created to change laws regarding drunk driving, Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America was created to build support for common-sense gun reforms. The nonpartisan grassroots movement of American mothers is demanding new and stronger solutions to lax gun laws and loopholes that jeopardize the safety of our children and families.
In nearly one year, the organization has more than 127,000 members with a chapter in every state in the country.
For more information or to get involved, visit www.momsdemandaction.org. Follow the organization on Facebook at www.facebook.com/
Since its creation in April 2006, Mayors Against Illegal Guns has grown from 15 members to more than 1,000 mayors from across the country. The organization has more than 1.5 million grassroots supporters, making it the largest gun violence prevention advocacy organization in the country.
The bipartisan coalition, co-chaired by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, has united the nation’s mayors around these common goals:
- protecting communities by holding gun offenders accountable
- demanding access to crime gun trace data that is critical to law enforcement efforts to combat gun trafficking
- working with legislators to fix weaknesses and loopholes in the law that make it far too easy for criminals and other dangerous people to get guns.
Learn more at www.