Gun Safety Weekly!

Did you see the news about Donald Trump’s running mate? With Mike Pence as Vice President, the gun lobby will have a booming voice in the West Wing.

We can’t afford to let that happen. Please chip in right away to help us fight back.




Donald Trump selects Mike Pence as VP

Donald Trump’s presidential bid just got a whole lot more dangerous.

Throughout his decades-long career, Mike Pence never missed an opportunity to block gun safety measures. He has consistently maintained an “A or A+” rating from the NRA.

We need your help to fight back, or our White House could become Enemy #1 in our efforts to keep our communities safe from rampant gun violence.

Atlanta cop opens fire on car, kills driver without even knowing if it's the suspect.
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On June 22, three-year veteran Officer James R. Burns of Atlanta, Georgia, got a call about a suspicious person supposedly breaking into cars outside an apartment complex. As Officer Burns pulled into the parking lot of the complex, another car was driving out. Officer Burns put on his light and siren. When the other car didn’t stop, Officer Burns exited his vehicle, yelled at the driver, and opened fire.

He shot 22-year-old Deravis Caine Rogers in the head and killed him.

An internal affairs investigation determined that Officer Burns had no idea who he was shooting at when he opened fire on the vehicle. Officer Burns was fired July 1 for excessive force.

“He had no idea who was in the vehicle. He had no idea if that was the vehicle he should be concerned with. He just discharged his weapon," Sgt. Warren Pickard told 11 Alive News. “The officer simply acted in a way that we cannot support.”

Georgia’s Bureau of Investigation is looking into the shooting for any possible criminal violation.

"It's a murder," Deravis Thomas, Rogers’ dad, told the TV station. "It's a murder and we need justice for that. He needs to be indicted and prosecuted,"

Getting fired isn’t even close to enough. As we know, many cops who are fired end up rehired by other departments. In this case, and so many others, this officer should face criminal charges for his horrific actions.

The Dallas Police Shooter Bought an AK-47 Via Facebook. The sale was made with no background check and was finalized in a parking lot.

Update: Today, Sen. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) called on Facebook and Instagram to prohibit postings for gun sales, citing concern over the news that Dallas gunman Micah Johnson had negotiated the purchase of an AK-47 through Facebook in 2014. "I remain deeply concerned that gun sales on Facebook and Instagram—or sales posted online but negotiated and concluded offline—may circumvent or violate state and federal laws, resulting in numerous unlawful sales of handguns, assault weapons, and other firearms," Sen. Markey wrote in a letter addressed to the companies' executives. Markey also asked the companies for information on what steps they have taken to address postings for gun sales. In response, a Facebook spokesman told Mother Jones in a statement, "We prohibit people from using Facebook and Instagram to offer and coordinate private sales of firearms. Any content that violates this policy will be removed as soon as we become aware of it - whether it is in groups, on accounts, or on pages."

In 2014, Micah Johnson, who killed five police officers and injured seven in an ambush in Dallas last week, purchased an AK-47 rifle in a deal arranged through Facebook and finalized in a Target parking lot, according to the New York Daily News. In an interview with the Daily News, the seller, 26-year-old Colton Crews, said that Johnson "didn't stand out as a nut job. He didn't stand out as a crazy person at all." In fact, because Johnson had been a US military service member, Crews said "he was like your first pick when you're selling a gun to somebody."

The AK-47 was apparently not used in the Dallas attack. Citing an unnamed law enforcement official, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday that Johnson used an Izhmash-Saiga 5.45 mm rifle, an AK-style variant, in the shooting. But news of the sale highlights just how easy it is to acquire a gun through Facebook. The social media giant has come under fire from activists who say the company isn't doing enough to make sure the site isn't used as an online weapons bazaar. In Texas, where Johnson purchased the AK-47 from Crews, background checks are not required in private sales, and Facebook pages dedicated to selling firearms are ubiquitous.

In the wake of the Orlando massacre last month, a disparate collection of individuals began taking to Facebook to report pages and individuals advertising gun sales in an attempt to get them kicked off the site for violating its user rules. In January, Facebook banned users from coordinating unregulated gun sales, but it has left the enforcement of the ban entirely to users who report violators.

In his interview with the Daily News, Crews said, "First off, it was my belief [Johnson] would have passed a background check. He didn't seem weird in any way, just a normal guy." At the Target parking lot where the deal was finalized, they made small talk. They checked out the AK-47, making sure it was in working condition, and Crews' stepdad thanked Johnson for his service. Johnson made a comment about how he missed the rifle's firepower since returning home from Afghanistan. "He seems like he's 100 percent on the up and up."
Police kill black men: Philando Castile, Alton Sterling police shootings get probed
Police shootings 2016: Body cam shows Fresno cops killing unarmed teen Dylan Noble

Serial street shooter: Phoenix Police looking for serial killer after 7 deaths

Black Father in Letter to His Son: "I Thought of You When I Saw the Son of Alton Sterling Weeping"

Concealed carry shootings: Waffle House robber with AK-47 shot by hero with a gun

Gun store robbery: Baton Rouge cops say gang stole guns to kill police officers
Last month, the Supreme Court ruled that people convicted of domestic violence should not be allowed to own a gun.

This is a critical step in the right direction. If we want to reduce senseless gun violence, we need to keep guns away from people convicted of violent crimes.

But, we believe there’s more we need to do. We’re fighting to pass laws that will keep guns out of the hands of people who pose a danger to themselves or others. http://action.gunresponsibility.org/Supreme-Court-Poll
PETA’s Killer NRA Protest
Michigan courthouse shooting: Prisoner kills two bailiffs after grabbing gun at court
Last week, Alton Sterling, Philando Castile and five Dallas police officers were among the hundreds of people who lost their lives to gun violence. Last month, 49 people were killed in the deadly massacre targeting LGBT people in Orlando. Their deaths shine a harsh light not only on the devastating impact of systemic racism and anti-LGBT discrimination on our society, but on the ways that our culture of fear and hate-driven gun ownership puts the lives of far too many Americans at risk.

After Orlando, Democrats in Congress took steps to try to pressure Republicans to break their allegiance with the National Rifle Association and take action on gun control. And as expected, Republicans failed to step up to the challenge.

The last fews weeks have proven that breaking the NRA’s chokehold on Congress will require massive grassroots pressure on our elected officials, demanding they take bold action for comprehensive gun control and offer more than their thoughts and prayers in the face of our epidemic of gun violence.

On Friday, President Obama condemned Congress’s inability to take proactive action to combat gun violence. He said, “I think I speak for every single American when I say that we are horrified...When people are armed with powerful weapons, unfortunately, it makes attacks like these more deadly and more tragic.” Today we’re standing with the president. Can you add your voice today to tell Republican leaders to vote on a meaningful package of gun control reforms, including an assault weapons ban?


Tell Republicans in Congress: We need real gun control now. Click here to sign the petition.

Republican members of Congress respond to gun tragedies while they’re in the news. But, they don’t take responsibility for how their actions, and inaction, lay the groundwork for hate crimes and gun violence, nor do they take action to prevent these tragedies from happening again. Instead, they offer up either fleeting sentiments or xenophobic and racist policies. They need to pass real gun control now, including:
  • Prohibiting the manufacture and sale of assault weapons and "large capacity" magazines for civilian use.
  • Closing the loophole that allows people to buy guns without undergoing background checks through private sales, at gun shows and online. An estimated 40 percent of all firearms transferred in the U.S. are transferred by unlicensed individuals not required to conduct background checks on buyers.1
  • Banning convicted domestic abusers and stalkers from buying guns. Abused women are five times more likely to be killed by their abuser if that individual has access to a firearm.2
  • Channeling resources into urban gun violence prevention programs
  • Ending the ban on gun violence research
In 2014 alone, the gun lobby spent over $30 million on political advertising and lobbying to influence legislators in Congress and state capitals across the country.3 If Republicans really want to protect Americans, they need to break their blind allegiance to the NRA and pass gun control legislation. But they’ll never act unless we force them. Can you add your voice today?

Tell Republicans in Congress: It’s time to pass real gun control legislation. Click here to sign the petition.

When Republicans disagree with advances in women’s rights, LGBT rights, or civil rights, they don’t just offer their thoughts and prayers, they push legislation. In just the last year, Republicans in Congress and in state legislatures across the country have worked to make abortion impossible to access, to discriminate against LGBT people, and to take away voting rights. At the same time, they have aggressively pushed the NRA’s agenda to weaken gun laws, from campus carry to permitless carry to stand your ground.

It’s clear that current Republican leaders in Congress lack the care, or courage, to act on their own. Now we have to make them.

Tell Republicans in Congress: It’s time to ban assault weapons Click the link below to sign the petition:


http://act.credoaction.com/sign/Orlando_Gun_Control_refresh/?t=7&akid=18592.6785281.4YniXk


  1. Universal Background Checks & the “Private” Sale Loophole Policy Summary,” Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, September 10, 2015.
  2. Gabby Giffords, National Domestic Violence Prevention Leaders Applaud New House Legislation to Keep Guns out of the Hands of Abusers,” Americans for Responsible Solutions, July 22, 2015.
  3. Ben Geier, “NRA's Massive Political Spending Gains Attention,” Fortune, December 3, 2015.