Friend,
At the beginning of this week I was sitting on the edge of my chair, anxiously awaiting news as to whether Gov. Gavin Newsom would sign a package of gun violence prevention bills in California. When I finally got word that Gov. Newsom would sign ALL SIX of Brady’s priority bills, I almost couldn’t believe it. This is HUGE.
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Gov. Newsom is a longtime advocate of gun violence prevention efforts, but this package of bills was different, Friend. A number of these bills were first-of-their kind legislation, including a bill to implement a tax on firearm sales to provide funding to gun violence prevention programs and a bill to ensure the financial industry uses “merchant category codes” to identify dangerous patterns of behavior associated with gun trafficking and mass shootings.
California is at the forefront of creating and implementing innovative solutions to prevent gun violence, and it’s working — California has one of the lowest rates of firearm death in the nation because of our proven-effective gun laws. And these laws would not be possible without our grassroots activists and dedicated supporters like you. In just the past few weeks, we sent more than 3,000 messages to California lawmakers in support of these bills!
This is the kind of progress that truly gives me hope. If we can do this in California, I know we can do it in other states across the country. In fact, right now, our policy team and grassroots network is hard at work in New York, Michigan, and Illinois. And we’re preparing for legislative sessions ahead.
Friend, we’re working tirelessly to pass gun safety laws at the local, state, and federal level — and we won’t give up. But these victories are the culmination of months of hard work and we can’t do it alone. Will you support our efforts to pass life-saving gun laws nationwide? Together, we can save lives.
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Thank you for your continued support.
In solidarity,
Tanya Schardt
Senior Counsel and Director of State and Federal Policy |
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TIME IS RUNNING OUT: Help Expand Brady Background Checks!
In case you missed it, President Biden recently used his executive authority to issue a rule that, if put into effect, would be the broadest expansion of firearm background checks in decades.
The rule aims to clarify the definition of what it means to be “engaged in the business” of selling firearms. A clear definition will ensure that individuals selling firearms for profit will have to conduct background checks, which moves us as close as possible to universal background checks without the urgently needed Congressional action. Today, 1 in 5 guns are sold WITHOUT a Brady Background Check through private sales at gun shows and online, which means that at least 20% of the firearms sold in the United States could go to people legally prohibited from possessing a gun — and no one would ever know.
Will you show your support for this rule by submitting a comment to the Department of Justice? We have less than 70 days to make our voices heard, so please take action now! |
“Building A Future Without Gun Violence” in Chicago and California! |
Yesterday, Brady’s “Building a Future Without Gun Violence” conference brought together community leaders, advocates, and those working on the front lines to discuss solutions to gun violence in Chicago. Together, we built strategies to interrupt the supply of firearms into our communities and took time to focus on healing and well-being.
The Chicago conference may be over, but our work is just beginning. We’re grateful for our partners Live Free Illinois, Hustle Mommies and Paint the Hood Orange, the Institute for NonViolence Chicago, and One Aim Illinois who made this event possible and we look forward to continuing our work together.
Next up, San Francisco, CA! The “Building a Future Without Gun Violence” conference will be coming to California October 13-14 and will feature keynote speaker Attorney General Rob Bonta!
In California, we will focus on legislative efforts and how we can build upon our successes to strengthen gun violence prevention efforts. We’ll also discuss equitable, data-driven approaches to reduce the flow of crime guns into our communities. Register now — space is filling up fast!
| Taking Action Six Years After the Route 91 Shooting
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Six years ago tomorrow, a gunman opened fire on a crowd at the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival in Las Vegas. 58 people were killed and more than 800 were wounded, marking the deadliest mass shooting in modern American history. We remember the victims and survivors of this day and continue to work toward solutions in their honor.
In the year before the shooting, the Vegas gunman spent more than $90,000 on firearms and equipment, including 55 guns and hundreds of rounds of ammunition. If these suspicious purchases had been flagged by the same types of systems used to detect patterns of behavior associated with credit card fraud and human trafficking, authorities could have been notified of this alarming pattern and moved to prevent the attack. Brady has led efforts to work with credit card companies in establishing a merchant category code for firearms and ammunition to prevent this type of violence. In 2022, major credit card companies agreed to take bold steps to ensure financial systems weren’t exploited, but the gun industry has pressured Visa and Mastercard to pause this life-saving progress.
That’s why we keep fighting – and winning. While we are still working to get the financial industry to implement these changes broadly, just this week California Gov. Newsom signed a first of its kind law to ensure these codes are used to identify dangerous patterns of behavior. With multifaceted, evidence-based solutions to gun violence, we will save lives and stop the kind of tragedy like those in Las Vegas experienced. |
Episode 236: Giving Gun Violence A Face While Crusading For Community Health
Scott Charles, a trauma outreach manager at Temple University Hospital, joins hosts Kelly and JJ to share his own experiences with gun violence and the impact it has had on his role in preventative care.
Together, they delve into the power of personal stories to humanize statistics and the reality of the trauma bay, revealing its stark contrast to the dramatized portrayal often seen on television. Scott introduces Kelly and JJ to the Cradle to Grave program, an initiative designed to educate young people about the harsh medical realities of firearm injuries.
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