Hi John,

One year ago, Americans went to bed mourning 20 lives lost in a senseless act of terror in El Paso, Texas. We woke up to news of yet another tragedy. Nine lives stolen in another mass shooting, this time in Dayton, Ohio.

Twenty-nine people were killed and more than 50 were wounded in less than 24 hours. Since then, three more El Paso victims have died.

These tragedies were devastating examples of all-too regular occurrences in our country: mass shootings driven by white nationalism, hate, and toxic masculinity. It is long past time to disarm hate and prevent tragedies like these.

The El Paso and Dayton shooters both used semi-automatic assault rifles to carry out their attacks. In Dayton, the shooter’s AR-15 rifle was equipped with a 100-round magazine. He fired 41 shots into the crowd in less than 30 seconds, killing nine people and injuring at least 17 others.

High-capacity magazines make shootings more deadly. Period. Whether a state prohibits high-capacity magazines is the single greatest predictor of mass shooting rates. They have no place in our communities. That is why we have been fighting for the last two years to pass a bill in the Washington State Legislature to restrict access to these lethal accessories.

Gun lobby legislators buried the proposal in bogus amendments last session, killing the bill. We cannot afford to let that happen again.

We are hard at work now to make sure that this lifesaving policy gets over the finish line next session. We know that Americans want to see high-capacity magazines restricted, but our opponents are determined to do anything and everything they can to stop this policy. Passing this law in Washington creates a model for the rest of the country to follow.

Please, make a gift today in honor of the victims of El Paso and Dayton to help save lives.

Sincerely,
Renée (she/her)