Thank you Emily for your thoughtful newsletter! I'm so sad for the people in TN.
I volunteer with Moms Demand Action and would urge everyone to connect with their local group by texting READY to 644-33. From educating on safe gun storage to meeting with lawmakers to supporting Gun Sense Candidates, we are doing the work! And remember to check gunsensevoter.org before voting!
After doing this work for years, I have wondered WHY is this SO HARD?! It shouldn't be this hard! And a Feb. tiktok from Jason Kander illuminated the issue. The problem isn't that Americans are uniquely violent. The problem is corruption. PLCAA is a law that specifically shields gunmakers from consequences of their actions. The normal forces of gravity that affect unreasonable business practices don't touch the gunmakers. They have no worries of jury verdicts holding them responsible for the death and carnage they cause so they don't self-regulate. They sell weapons of war for max profits all day. So we are stuck in a position of needing citizens to pressure the lawmakers to regulate this industry and it's a hard, slow job. I think everything would change overnight if PLCAA was repealed.
Repealing PLCAA has been near the at the top of my agenda for many years, like everything else in the gun space it will only happen with a gun sense majority that can pierce or pass the filibuster. Sandy hook families have done some excellent work getting around immunity at the state level. I think I talk about this in my guns 2 highlight on insta but maybe it’s the topic of a future Substack. It was fascinating to me how Jason’s particular presentation of this topic really connected with people! It’s not an issue other of us have successfully messaged.
Another important thing to message is the connection between loose gun laws in the US and violent drug cartels. There is one gun store in all of Mexico! We are arming the fentanyl dealers pouring poison into our country. And the guns filter south, causing violence and creating refugees who come up to the border. I agree with you republicans are captured on the gun issue but they should be held to account on this. Anyone who cares about fentanyl or the border should care about gun reform.
I’m in a solid red state, but I couldn’t tell you the last time I voted for a Republican. This is one of the reasons along with women’s reproductive freedom.
I'm also in a deep red state, and it's hard because dems rarely run because of the entrenchment. But I've been able to build some really good conversations with people, and at least it's being talked about amongst constituents - progress in steps. We've got this!
Hi Emily, great rundown! For those of us in solidly blue states with reps that consistently support GVP, I assume the move is public square/social media, try to have those conversations from number 3 with people in red and purple states?
Hi! So noting when I lived in RI, my state Senator actually objected to some of the state-level GVP bills, so you never know! What I am trying to do is create tech for an MLM of relational organizing, we'll see if we can get it done! But yes, public square stuff & relational organizing with people in red and purple states, OR people who are disengaged/apathetic in your own area to mobilize *them* to talk to people!
Great overview and great reminder how much this administration has done - and can still do! I agree on the relational organizing recommendation, but there is something psychological going on with voters on the right.
At this point, most Americans have been personally touched by a mass shooting event or know someone who has. And yet a significant portion of our population is still operating under the “more guns = safer” premise *against all available data* and cite mental health as the main issue.
I look at the grandmas, grandpas, moms and dads around me who are still voting for Republicans and wonder, “aren’t you also looking for the exits at the movies like I am? Aren’t you also a little afraid of parades?”
And yet the only folks I know who have changed their day to day behavior bc of fear of gun violence are my more left-leaning friends. Is this denial, hubris, a deep sense of inevitability? Because even if we disagree on what causes increased gun violence, these same members of my community aren’t voting to increase funding for mental healthcare. It seems beyond discussion at this point.
I think a fundamental difference between Republican and Democratic ideology, at it's emotional core - is a desire to help oneself versus a belief that helping everyone is how you help oneself. The belief that being able to concealed carry (or 'trusted' men on your team concealed carrying) will save you, to me, jives with this ideological split.
Agree with that. I also wonder if we can bridge that divide via relational organizing that goes farther than encouraging my left leaning friends to be more engaged (also critical!)
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and experience on this topic. I’ve been watching the TN movement over the last year and the part that has always struck me as so wild is how out of touch the politicians appear to be with their constituents on this topic (even the conservative ones), for the reasons you’ve discussed. I am interested to hear more about relational organizing. Sometimes I’m not sure how to engage with people on these issues (even people with similar views) without feeling like a Debbie Downer. Also why is this so much a women’s movement and how do we relationally organize with our spouses, male friends, brothers to get them to help?? Sorry for the rambles. Ps great 🍆 reference.
On the men question, I’ve re-written a response a couple times. (a) The two employees of the Office of Gun violence prevention are both men. (Good ones who think women are whole human beings with thoughts of value!) and there are tons of men who care about this. Jaime’s dad and some of the dads from Sandy Hook come to mind! (b) that this is seen as a women’s movement, to me, is not inherently problematic. Do women not have persuasive capabilities, votes and political power? In the fight against violence and to protect children, are we shocked this has the optics of womanhood? (c) of four big GVP orgs, two were founded by women and two by men, that MDA is the one you probably think of says more about their role and power within the movement (and possibly just the capacity of Shannon Watts) than much else.
Thanks for responding and fair points across the board. I think part of it is definitely MDA - of which I am a member - but also perhaps all the images from the gallery in TN this week, which seemed to be heavily skewed toward women. I also feel like a lot of the GVP-specific content I see through social media is generated by women but maybe I’m not following the right accounts! Anyway, thanks again for the thoughtful response it’s given me some things to think over.
Also - to the extent this could be considered a women’s movement im not knocking the idea of it at all. Women get shit done! Just thinking about ways to expand the discussion to engage more people.
As a Tennessean, they're so out of touch because we can’t have this conversation without also tackling racism, gerrymandering, and voter suppression (especially via the criminal justice system). TN has been broken up by new maps and we’re now represented by white men who live nowhere near us and are a state with one of the largest numbers of disenfranchised voters due to criminal records. They know they’re not popular and are doing everything and anything to keep people from having a voice, which then leads to record low turnout. It’s hard to look at one issue while not also looking at how all of them interact with each other.
Thank you for your work- it was especially brutal to see the exact numbers in June-July 2022 after Uvalde. Uvalde felt like a chance, and for me personally my oldest kid was starting K that August so it was hitting even closer to home. I’ve been in Moms Demand Action since 2022, and the Sandy Hook anniversary hits especially hard every year. I thought I was following the TN movement closely but it helped me to see it laid out here.
Calling it "gun violence" is like blaming cars for accidents. It's never going to get resolved until it is acknowledged the issue that's become an epidemic is individual violent behavior.
The term deep canvassing is proprietary, so I try to be mindful! But also I don’t think evidence of the success has been replicated beyond the single study. At the end of the day, my lifetime of personal experience tells me that it’s hard to persuade a stranger but people who you have a relationship with (historically there were more of them who you are in community with) are inclined to listen and hear you more. So yes, definitely the same baseline action (longer conversations)!
Thank you Emily for your thoughtful newsletter! I'm so sad for the people in TN.
I volunteer with Moms Demand Action and would urge everyone to connect with their local group by texting READY to 644-33. From educating on safe gun storage to meeting with lawmakers to supporting Gun Sense Candidates, we are doing the work! And remember to check gunsensevoter.org before voting!
After doing this work for years, I have wondered WHY is this SO HARD?! It shouldn't be this hard! And a Feb. tiktok from Jason Kander illuminated the issue. The problem isn't that Americans are uniquely violent. The problem is corruption. PLCAA is a law that specifically shields gunmakers from consequences of their actions. The normal forces of gravity that affect unreasonable business practices don't touch the gunmakers. They have no worries of jury verdicts holding them responsible for the death and carnage they cause so they don't self-regulate. They sell weapons of war for max profits all day. So we are stuck in a position of needing citizens to pressure the lawmakers to regulate this industry and it's a hard, slow job. I think everything would change overnight if PLCAA was repealed.
Repealing PLCAA has been near the at the top of my agenda for many years, like everything else in the gun space it will only happen with a gun sense majority that can pierce or pass the filibuster. Sandy hook families have done some excellent work getting around immunity at the state level. I think I talk about this in my guns 2 highlight on insta but maybe it’s the topic of a future Substack. It was fascinating to me how Jason’s particular presentation of this topic really connected with people! It’s not an issue other of us have successfully messaged.
Another important thing to message is the connection between loose gun laws in the US and violent drug cartels. There is one gun store in all of Mexico! We are arming the fentanyl dealers pouring poison into our country. And the guns filter south, causing violence and creating refugees who come up to the border. I agree with you republicans are captured on the gun issue but they should be held to account on this. Anyone who cares about fentanyl or the border should care about gun reform.
I’m in a solid red state, but I couldn’t tell you the last time I voted for a Republican. This is one of the reasons along with women’s reproductive freedom.
I'm also in a deep red state, and it's hard because dems rarely run because of the entrenchment. But I've been able to build some really good conversations with people, and at least it's being talked about amongst constituents - progress in steps. We've got this!
Run! You could definitely do it! If Lauren Boebert can, so can you!
Hi Emily, great rundown! For those of us in solidly blue states with reps that consistently support GVP, I assume the move is public square/social media, try to have those conversations from number 3 with people in red and purple states?
Hi! So noting when I lived in RI, my state Senator actually objected to some of the state-level GVP bills, so you never know! What I am trying to do is create tech for an MLM of relational organizing, we'll see if we can get it done! But yes, public square stuff & relational organizing with people in red and purple states, OR people who are disengaged/apathetic in your own area to mobilize *them* to talk to people!
Great overview and great reminder how much this administration has done - and can still do! I agree on the relational organizing recommendation, but there is something psychological going on with voters on the right.
At this point, most Americans have been personally touched by a mass shooting event or know someone who has. And yet a significant portion of our population is still operating under the “more guns = safer” premise *against all available data* and cite mental health as the main issue.
I look at the grandmas, grandpas, moms and dads around me who are still voting for Republicans and wonder, “aren’t you also looking for the exits at the movies like I am? Aren’t you also a little afraid of parades?”
And yet the only folks I know who have changed their day to day behavior bc of fear of gun violence are my more left-leaning friends. Is this denial, hubris, a deep sense of inevitability? Because even if we disagree on what causes increased gun violence, these same members of my community aren’t voting to increase funding for mental healthcare. It seems beyond discussion at this point.
I think a fundamental difference between Republican and Democratic ideology, at it's emotional core - is a desire to help oneself versus a belief that helping everyone is how you help oneself. The belief that being able to concealed carry (or 'trusted' men on your team concealed carrying) will save you, to me, jives with this ideological split.
Agree with that. I also wonder if we can bridge that divide via relational organizing that goes farther than encouraging my left leaning friends to be more engaged (also critical!)
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and experience on this topic. I’ve been watching the TN movement over the last year and the part that has always struck me as so wild is how out of touch the politicians appear to be with their constituents on this topic (even the conservative ones), for the reasons you’ve discussed. I am interested to hear more about relational organizing. Sometimes I’m not sure how to engage with people on these issues (even people with similar views) without feeling like a Debbie Downer. Also why is this so much a women’s movement and how do we relationally organize with our spouses, male friends, brothers to get them to help?? Sorry for the rambles. Ps great 🍆 reference.
On the men question, I’ve re-written a response a couple times. (a) The two employees of the Office of Gun violence prevention are both men. (Good ones who think women are whole human beings with thoughts of value!) and there are tons of men who care about this. Jaime’s dad and some of the dads from Sandy Hook come to mind! (b) that this is seen as a women’s movement, to me, is not inherently problematic. Do women not have persuasive capabilities, votes and political power? In the fight against violence and to protect children, are we shocked this has the optics of womanhood? (c) of four big GVP orgs, two were founded by women and two by men, that MDA is the one you probably think of says more about their role and power within the movement (and possibly just the capacity of Shannon Watts) than much else.
Thanks for responding and fair points across the board. I think part of it is definitely MDA - of which I am a member - but also perhaps all the images from the gallery in TN this week, which seemed to be heavily skewed toward women. I also feel like a lot of the GVP-specific content I see through social media is generated by women but maybe I’m not following the right accounts! Anyway, thanks again for the thoughtful response it’s given me some things to think over.
Also - to the extent this could be considered a women’s movement im not knocking the idea of it at all. Women get shit done! Just thinking about ways to expand the discussion to engage more people.
As a Tennessean, they're so out of touch because we can’t have this conversation without also tackling racism, gerrymandering, and voter suppression (especially via the criminal justice system). TN has been broken up by new maps and we’re now represented by white men who live nowhere near us and are a state with one of the largest numbers of disenfranchised voters due to criminal records. They know they’re not popular and are doing everything and anything to keep people from having a voice, which then leads to record low turnout. It’s hard to look at one issue while not also looking at how all of them interact with each other.
Thank you for your work- it was especially brutal to see the exact numbers in June-July 2022 after Uvalde. Uvalde felt like a chance, and for me personally my oldest kid was starting K that August so it was hitting even closer to home. I’ve been in Moms Demand Action since 2022, and the Sandy Hook anniversary hits especially hard every year. I thought I was following the TN movement closely but it helped me to see it laid out here.
Calling it "gun violence" is like blaming cars for accidents. It's never going to get resolved until it is acknowledged the issue that's become an epidemic is individual violent behavior.
https://shorturl.at/dmrTV
Your last point makes me think of deep canvassing, & the book Dirt Road Organizing!
The term deep canvassing is proprietary, so I try to be mindful! But also I don’t think evidence of the success has been replicated beyond the single study. At the end of the day, my lifetime of personal experience tells me that it’s hard to persuade a stranger but people who you have a relationship with (historically there were more of them who you are in community with) are inclined to listen and hear you more. So yes, definitely the same baseline action (longer conversations)!
Ooh didn’t realize it was proprietary! But also yes, I agree that minds can be changed within already existing relationships more than strangers. 🩷
There is if the left ever learns it is simply violent behavior period point blank and not "gun violence"
https://shorturl.at/nzDOS
I am so grateful for you, Emily. Thank you for teaching us how to mobilize in meaningful ways.