Tomorrow is the last day to vote.
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John, let me tell you about my son.
Camilo was 18 in 2008, so his first opportunity to vote was Obama's first presidential election. When I asked him about his plans to vote, he shrugged it off, but I insisted that it was important for him to vote and to make a plan to do so. He'd want to tell his children and grandchildren that it was the first election he voted in. And by 2012, he was voting and telling others to do the same, all without my encouragement.
But Camilo will never have children or grandchildren to tell about his first vote.
In December of 2014, Camilo went to a neighborhood club to celebrate completing his training to become a paramedic. On leaving the club, a gun was fired into the crowd. One bullet hit Camilo in the heart, ending his beautiful life and his bright future.
During this year of COVID-19, I often think of how Camilo would have been a first responder. He would be saving others' lives if a gun hadn't ended his.
John, gun violence prevention is on the ballot this year. After Camilo was killed, I was shocked to learn that Americans are 25 times more likely to die of gun homicide than citizens of our peer countries. Every day, more than 100 people die from a gun in this country. The pandemic has only made this situation more dire. Gun sales have soared, many to first-time buyers, raising concerns of safe storage and handling. Meanwhile, loopholes in our background check system continue to go unaddressed due to the NRA's allies in office.
John, we need to vote. We need to elect Gun Sense Candidates to office up and down the ballot.
Confirm your polling place so you're ready to vote tomorrow.
I wish Camilo were here to tell you about the importance of voting. That's why this year, I vote for him and the countless others like him who will no longer be able to cast their ballot for the future they believe in.
This year and every year, let's vote for them.
Thank you for being a part of this movement.
Clare Senchyna
Survivor of Gun Violence
Volunteer
Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America
