Hi John,

By now, you've heard: Jacob Blake, a 29-year-old Black man, was shot in the back seven times by police as his children looked on Sunday evening. Miraculously, he's expected to survive but is paralyzed from the waist down.

In response, protestors took to the streets in his hometown of Kenosha, Wisconsin to demand justice. Last night, a 17-year-old Illinois male arrived on the scene and allegedly fired multiple shots from his assault rifle, killing two people and injuring another.

Just like that, one tragedy becomes four.

Our country was founded on the right to peacefully protest and that right should not come with the fear of being shot. Civilians that come to gatherings openly carrying a gun are not there for discourse, they are there to intimidate or worse.

White supremacists have become emboldened under this administration and the gun lobby is openly stoking fear about people of color in an attempt to drive gun sales.

At the Alliance, we've worked to strengthen hate crime statutes, prevent underaged individuals from accessing weapons of war, and hold police accountable. But the events in Kenosha are a sobering reminder that we have so much more work to do.

Thank you for being by our side, as always.

Renée Hopkins (she/her)

PS - If you want to help fund our fight to disarm hate, elect gun responsibility champions, and pass lifesaving laws, you can do so here.