Hi John,

This Monday evening, news broke of yet another mass shooting. A gunman opened fire on the Michigan State University campus, killing three students and injuring five others. Now, the school and East Lansing community as a whole is carrying the trauma countless other students, faculty, and staff across the nation know too well following a mass shooting. 

I had just landed in my home state of Michigan that evening, on my way to Lansing to meet with partners united in preventing gun violence. Sadly, this work tends to be met with greater urgency following the raw emotions of a moment that while shocking,   continues to happen. Over and over again. 

And while the national headlines are what capture the country's attention– and spur immediate outrage and action–it’s the quiet suffering and individual heartbreak that remains steadfast within the gun violence epidemic. In 2020, 54% of all gun-related deaths in the U.S. were suicides, resulting in an average of 65 firearm suicide deaths a day. 

That’s 65 irreplaceable lives lost. 65 families torn apart. 65 deaths that very rarely generate news coverage. Every single day. And as I sat and watched the news unfold this Monday evening, I couldn’t help but wonder how much faster we’d act if every single gun death received the attention school shootings do.  

The MSU campus is just a few miles from the state capital in Lansing, and within 36 hours hundreds of students gathered on the steps and demanded that the legislators who came to support them step away from the podium and instead make their way into the audience to look at each of their faces. They demanded change. With certainty and without apology. I was truly moved by the power and clarity of their actions and voices.

This level of directness is what the gun violence prevention movement needs. There’s no more room for thought and prayers. There is only space for policy and change. The students of MSU know it, and I hope you do as well. 

Please, consider supporting the lifesaving work of the Alliance as they continue fighting for their boldest policy agenda yet–in Washington and in partnership with leaders and communities across the nation. 

With gratitude,
Christian Sinderman (He/Him) 

ALLIANCE FOR GUN RESPONSIBILITY
P.O. Box 4187 Seattle, WA 98194

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