For the last (four?) years I’ve been part of our local chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America.
For those who don’t know, it’s a grassroots organization of both mothers and others, gun-owners and non-gun owners, who refuse to accept 100 gun deaths a day. We are the gun safety version of Mothers Against Drunk Driving.
The last couple years I’ve been the legislative lead of our group– pushing for changes at the federal, state, and local level. (To be clear, I am writing here as an individual, not as a representative of the group as a whole). I was just reflecting over the last year’s work, all that we’ve done, all that’s yet to do.
Federally, we’re fucked. The filibuster is fucking us over. We have gotten meaningful legislation through the House again and again and then it just sits in the Senate. It’s bullshit and it raised my blood pressure to dangerous levels, so let’s not talk about it anymore. But please, call your Senators, tell them to ditch the fucking filibuster.
Statewide, there is more movement and more progress. We pushed for an were able to obtain meaningful funding for gun violence intervention and prevention programs. Y’all– these groups, like Advance Peace, Urban Peace Institute, and United Playaz, to name a few– are INCREDIBLE. The statistics are both heart-breaking and breath-taking, we know these programs work, they save lives, they need to be funded and thankfully now they can be!
We passed legislation to increase police accountability, open up victim funds to victims of police violence, and finally create a process to remove abusive cops. Locally, cities all over California created safe storage ordinances and school boards sent home safe storage notification to parents.
One of our own volunteers was elected to the school board and she got a resolution passed here in Napa.
And we mourned shooting after shooting. We lit candles and cut out hearts. We gathered in parks to write care cards to survivors. We marched and we called and our children drew hearts with chalk.
We called voters and texted our friends and defeated a dangerous recall. We said adieu to one of our local co-founders, as she and her family moved back to France.
It was such a long year. It was such a hard year.
And everyday we hear about more. But we will not give up. We cannot. Not on our kids.
People often ask me, “Aren’t you tired?”
Of course I’m tired. I’m exhausted. I’m infuriated. I don’t understand why more people aren’t in this fight with us. But I won’t stop. I can’t. Even if it’s Zoom meetings and phone calls with representatives and card after card after card sent. I will keep going.
Pretty Good Ugly 