“I am a big advocate of the Second Amendment. I have been from the beginning. I’ve protected it. These things are terrible. But the gun doesn’t do the shooting, the people do.”

This is how President Trump responded to the mass shooting at Florida State University (FSU), where a gunman shot and killed two people and injured six others on Thursday. His response is disgraceful and a slap in the face to my community of Florida, the victims, and survivors of gun violence like me. 

My name is Aalayah Eastmond and I am a survivor of the 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas (MSD) High School. 

Young people like me are being forced to relive tragedy after tragedy, friend. Some victims who survived the shooting at MSD were on FSU’s campus as the shooter began his rampage. The shooting at FSU also comes just days before the 1999 Columbine shooting, and just earlier this week, four students were shot and injured at a school in Dallas, TX. Not to mention the daily gun violence Black and Brown communities experience without national media coverage.

This is why my generation has been deemed ‘generation lockdown.’ And it’s not because we want to live this way — it’s because our elected leaders refuse to act. 

President Trump made that evidently clear. Right now, while families are grieving, Florida lawmakers are attempting to pass state legislation to LOWER the age to buy a gun. Let that sink in, friend. They want to make it EASIER for shooters like the one at FSU to gain access to firearms. 

We are not here again because we lack solutions. We are here again because of weak leadership, our nation’s lax gun laws, political cowardice, and an industry that profits off bloodshed. The president is not powerless. Congress isn’t powerless. They are choosing this — and we’re paying the price with our lives. 

We need bold action, and we need it now, friend, because no other community should have to experience the pain and loss I know all too well. And that’s why I’m reaching out to you today. 

Will you join me in urging Congress to strengthen our nation’s gun laws and put lives before gun industry profits? The NRA and its allies want you to think that this is the norm. But only in America must we fear being gunned down in our schools, grocery stores, and parks. Please rush a message to Congress NOW and demand they act!

In solidarity,

Aalayah Eastmond
Team ENOUGH Founding Member, Brady Cultural & Community Engagement Manager
Gun Violence Survivor

The Importance of Safe Storage

The mass shooting at Florida State University underscores the need for safe firearm storage. The gunman had access to one of his mother's firearms, which was found at the scene. Tragically, this is not a unique case – 76% of school shooters get their guns from the home. 

Join us in spreading awareness about firearm misuse and how safe firearm storage can prevent it. In doing so, you have the power to save a life.

What the White Lotus Teaches Us About Guns on Screen

SPOILERS FOR THE WHITE LOTUS AHEAD

In case you didn’t hear, one of HBO’s hottest shows, The White Lotus, just wrapped its third season. In between extravagant displays of wealth, jaw-dropping interpersonal drama, and a stunning Thailand backdrop, the characters were haunted by a very real danger: gun violence. 

Throughout the season, we saw how guns that are not safely stored can be stolen. We saw the very real threat of firearm suicide when guns are not properly secured. And we watched a mass shooting unfold, and lived through the aftermath of it. 

The White Lotus became the newest addition of a movement that Brady has been at the forefront of leading: showing the real impact of guns on screen to promote gun safety. Guns are prominently featured in television, art, music, and movies across the globe, but only America has a gun violence epidemic. While TV and film didn’t cause the problem, it can help fix it. 

Studies show that audiences adopt the behaviors and attitudes of their favorite on-screen characters. For example, 44% of adolescents who start smoking do so because of smoking images they saw in movies. When seatbelt use began to be shown in movies, seatbelt use grew by over 700%. And to promote safe driving, Hollywood coined the term “designated driver.”

Our culture change work at Brady, led by our Show Gun Safety campaign, calls on producers, writers, actors, and leaders in the entertainment industry to use this power and model gun safety, or the consequences of a lack of gun safety, on screen to change our culture and our behaviors. 

To learn more about our Show Gun Safety campaign, read more in Brady President Kris Brown’s newest Substack piece: “What The White Lotus Teaches Us About Guns on Screen."

Take Action: Say NO to Loaded, Hidden Firearms Everywhere!

We must remain vigilant, friend. NRA-backed lawmakers are still attempting to pass the Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act. This deadly legislation would create a concealed carry mandate, allowing anyone to carry loaded firearms everywhere — including in parks, playgrounds, and on public transportation — regardless of state or local law. 

Trump campaigned on the promise to sign legislation like this into law, and he and his allies in Congress are trying to uphold that promise, regardless of the explicit danger it imposes on our communities. A concealed carry mandate is a recipe for disaster, and the American people will pay the price. In fact, states with permitless carry laws already see higher rates of gun violence, including a 29% increase in violent crime. 

We cannot sit idly by as Congress pushes to pass this bill and send it to President Trump to sign into law. We have to take action NOW to protect our communities. Tell Congress to oppose the Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act.

Victory in Colorado: Ensuring Tax Dollars Are Spent Responsibly on Firearms

This week, with the support of Brady, the Colorado State Senate passed SB25-185. This legislation would ensure that tax dollars are not spent on gun dealers with serious violations who have contributed to our nation’s gun violence crisis. Brady has long advocated for this measure in other states on the local level, and we’re now closer to making it the law of the land in Colorado. 

Law enforcement agencies and their officers purchase a lot of guns. In fact, cities across the country spend more than $5 billion a year on firearms alone. This means taxpayers like you, friend, are the number one purchasers of firearms. 

A Brady investigation found law enforcement agencies have spent millions of taxpayer dollars to buy firearms from manufacturers and dealers with repeated violations of federal firearm regulations. In just one example, between 2015 and 2024, Colorado State agencies spent over $3.1 million at a dealer whose locations were cited by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) for more than a dozen violations of federal firearm laws.

Without SB25-185, there are no mechanisms in Colorado that ensure that taxpayer dollars are being spent at responsible gun dealers and manufacturers, not negligent or criminal industry members who contribute to firearm trafficking. It’s why we need this legislation now.

This bill is an essential step forward for Colorado to ensuring tax dollars go to responsible gun industry business. To learn more about government firearm purchasing, visit our webpage.

'Angers Me Beyond Measure': Father of Parkland Victim Slams Trump's Handling of Gun Violence, MSNBC

FSU Shooting Prompts Renewed Calls for Gun Regulations, Tampa Bay Times

Rearming Domestic Abusers: Trump’s New Gun Policy Threatens Women Across the Country, Ms. Magazine

What We Lost on April 16, Kris Brown Substack

My Dad’s Death and the Forgotten Half of America’s Gun Crisis, TIME

Proactive Care: School Nurses' Crucial Role in Gun Violence Prevention, End Family Fire and National Association of School Nurses

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