I know politicians fear the gun lobby.
But I also know that fear cannot compare to what those innocent children in Florida felt as the gunshots rang out, bullets flew through the halls of their school, and their teachers and classmates were gunned down.
That fear is nothing compared to what parents must have felt waiting in the parking lot of the high school waiting for news about their children.
If I could offer protection to those families and the 315 Americans who are shot every day, I would. But we can’t wall ourselves from the threat of gun violence, nor will we find safety in the deadly cycle of arming ourselves against each other.
The defenders of the status quo – advocates of the firearms industry and the politicians paid to defend it – will tell you that events like these are virtual acts of nature, products of mental illness or bad parenting, beyond our ability to control.
This could not be further from the truth.
Every day we fail to take action, we choose this fate. We tolerate politicians who fail to acknowledge this crisis and vote against our safety. We let our gun violence epidemic continue day after deadly day.
That cycle has to end, but it will only happen when politicians realize they have more to fear from you than they do the gun lobby. And that starts with making your voice heard.
Sign my pledge:
My heart is with the victims and survivors, and my gratitude is with Broward County’s courageous first responders. The question now is if we will find the courage to pass the laws we need to protect our children, to stop dangerous people from accessing guns.
If Congress won’t act, American voters must.
All my best,
Gabby Giffords