It only took one week for New Zealand to ban assault weapons after a deadly shooting five years ago. We need the U.S. to follow suit.

John,

Five years ago, a white supremacist with an assault weapon murdered 51 people at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand. 

Then, less than a week after the shooting, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced a nationwide ban on military-style assault weapons — and parliament passed it with near-unanimous support. 

For those of us here in the United States, that kind of swift response feels almost unfathomable. Gun violence survivors like me, like those who lead at Brady, have been fighting for tangible change — and pushing through their own grief — for years

Yet, our country has wasted years of tragedies without any action against these deadly weapons of war. I know what it’s like to wait for years for justice – it took years to find the man who killed my mother in our doorway. And so many other gun violence survivors have felt this ache for action not for days or months, but for years.

John, New Zealand banned assault weapons five years ago and they haven’t had another mass shooting since.

I want our country to be free of mass tragedy, too. We know how to do it because the assault weapons ban is proven to work – it’s worked for our country before, and it’s long past time to pass this legislation again.

That’s why I’m asking you to speak up today and demand lifesaving action from our lawmakers. We're looking for 2,500 gun violence prevention champions to speak up in fierce support of an assault weapons ban today, before 11:59 p.m. tonight, and your response is missing, John:

It’s long past time for change – thanks for continuing to fight. 

Liz Dunning

Gun Violence Survivor

Chief Development & Engagement Officer