Submitted information
For The Arkadelphian
A public interest meeting has been scheduled in Arkadelphia by a grassroots organization that hopes to curb gun violence in America. Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense invites the public to attend at 5 p.m. Wednesday, June 29, at Citizens Bank, 2710 Pine St.
Local group member Judy Harrison said the non-partisan organization does not oppose guns but rather promotes for gun safety, responsibility and accountability.
Moms Demand Action has a chapter in every state and the District of Columbia. Along with Mayors Against Illegal Guns, Students Demand Action and the Everytown Survivor Network, it is part of the nation’s largest gun violence prevention organization, Everytown for Gun Safety, with over eight million supporters.
Moms Demand Action works with gun violence survivors, mayors, law enforcement officers, faith leaders, educators, gun owners, local businesses, doctors and more in communities across the country to prevent gun violence. The organization says it does this work because every day more than 110 Americans die from gun violence and hundreds more are wounded. Gun violence is the leading cause of death for American children and teens.
The daily toll of gun violence in America doesn’t always make headlines, but this violence affects everyone, everywhere. It strikes big cities, small towns and rural communities. The organization says citizens can support responsible gun ownership while doing much more to keep guns out of the wrong hands and create a culture of gun safety. Moms Demand Action advocates for the following policies:
● Keeping Guns Out of the Wrong Hands – A Better Background Check System. Lawmakers need to close loopholes in the federal background check system, such as those that allow people to buy guns online or from private sellers without going through a background check.
● Protecting Kids and Communities – Supporting Red Flag Laws and Responsible Access to Firearms. To keep our families safe from gun violence, lawmakers must pursue policies like Red Flag laws, which allow family and law enforcement to intervene if someone poses a threat to themselves or others — before deadly tragedies involving firearms take place. Lawmakers must also limit easy access to firearms and accessories capable of inflicting mass casualties and encourage safe and responsible storage of all guns.
● Addressing America’s Uniquely Lethal Domestic Abuse Problem – Disarming Domestic Abusers. More than half of women murdered with guns in America are killed by an intimate partner or family member, and women are five times more likely to be killed in a domestic confrontation when a gun is present. Lawmakers must strengthen laws that help keep guns out of the hands of domestic abusers.
● Combating Daily Gun Violence – Supporting Research, Law Enforcement and Local Solutions. The government needs to support law enforcement, researchers and local communities in their efforts to combat daily gun violence by funding new research into gun violence; community-driven, evidence-based interventions to curb city gun violence; and new tools to help law enforcement collect evidence, trace all crime guns, reduce trafficking and solve gun crimes.