Smart gun laws, or, orange IS the new black

COLUMBINE…VIRGINIA TECH…SANDY HOOK…UCLA…AND TOO MANY MORE

Off the top of our heads, unfortunately, I’m sure we can add other now-familiar names to this list.

What seems like a lifetime ago, in a place in my life very far away, I was quoted in a community profile upon taking a new job: “It scares me to death that more and more victims of violent crime seem to be children who are targets of gunfire. It’s our obligation to fight against violence in our society and do what we can to remove weapons from the hands of those who shouldn’t have them!”

I said these words well more than fifteen years ago, not long after the Columbine shooting brought the epidemic of gun violence in our society into clear (and all-too-common) focus. The years since have been riddled with episode after episode of campus calamities, street crime, and yes, violent abuses by law enforcement. There is no question in my mind that smarter gun laws, enacted and enforced by responsible leadership, is paramount to the continued (or renewed) health of our community.

Tomorrow, June 2, is National Gun Violence Awareness Day. People are encouraged to wear orange in demonstration of their support of sensible gun laws, and the effort to reduce the impact of gun-related mortality. And, we can certainly do more than wearing orange (and important gesture, yet symbolic at best). We – all people of good will – must speak out, advocate, and lobby for sensible gun laws, AND for support for the surrounding issues that fuel this issue. And it doesn’t matter where you fall on the political spectrum; from the most progressive wing of those who would outlaw gun ownership to those who vehemently believe that the Second Amendment allow you to own *any* firearm you desire without limitation, ALL of us need to agree that we can only continue with intelligent regulations. Yet, we cannot intelligently address the problem of gun violence if we ignore mental health, education, incarceration, and economic disadvantage as the serious matters they are. So too, racial disparity and gender inequality must be in the mix of our dialogue to navigate the quagmire of America’s ills (for more on my opinion regarding specifics of gun regulation, and the 2^nd Amendment, please see http://guitarandpen.blogspot.com/2015/10/its-time-to-get-guns.html).

So yes, tomorrow, wear orange to show your support. More importantly, make your voice heard – contact your local, state and national representatives, push them to support smart gun laws, and put greater control on *who* can obtain a gun, and more importantly, how/how quickly. We owe this to our children’s well-being, our American future, our lasting posterity.