Are you marching this Saturday?
Well, HI. It's been quite a while, and, really, who knows where the wind will blow next, but I've been learning a great deal and have much to pass on and muse over.
But for now, there's work to do. Are you joining the March for Our Lives in your city this Saturday? It's a national event designed and led by teenagers (GOD BLESS THE TEENAGERS) to demand that legislators make common-sense changes in gun laws. There are over 800 registered local events; find yours here. If you want to take a poster but don't know what to write, Amplifier offers a huge number of beautiful, free downloads to print. Or just go, no sign necessary. We need to be the boots on the ground, and every boot counts.
I'll be marching in Pittsburgh with my brave kids, who are appalled and heartbroken that American children have been left to plead for their own safety. Their posters are devastatingly simple (eg, "No guns in school!"). My sign, on the other hand, is influenced by my NRA-member brother, who badgered me for specificity. I'll jam onto a single sheet of poster board something like "no automatic weapons / no bump stocks / no high-capacity magazines / no immediate sales / no loopholes / no excuses." It will be served with a magnifying glass.
By way of inspiration: Last week, at a small rally commemorating the one-month anniversary of the Parkland shootings, Pastors Randy Bush and Patrice Fowler-Searcy of Pittsburgh's East Liberty Presbyterian Church spoke sensibly, lovingly, and strongly. Amid waves of overblown political rhetoric and fear, I felt grounded by their words. Perhaps you will, too.
From Randy Bush:
It is important for faith communities to speak up now. The issue of gun violence is not just a matter for politicians to sort out, for lobbyists to do battle over. Neither is it right that children and students should be forced to stand alone, to challenge our national conscience to do what is right and do it right now!
As people of faith, we aspire to live into a world where all God’s creatures, all God’s children are protected. There is so much that is going well in the world right now: advances in medicine curing cancers and disease, global improvements in access to clean water, thousands each day moving out of abject poverty, able to educate their children and dream of a better future for them. As people of faith we can see what a beloved community looks like—and so as persons of hope we aspire to make that vision a reality.
As people of faith, we affirm that the students are right: that no one should have to be afraid when they go to school that they may be shot down or killed. We affirm that the teachers are right: that no one enters that profession wanting to carry a weapon, wanting to push aside their lesson plans in order to prepare survival plans for their classrooms. We affirm that parents are right and the vast majority of this nation is right: that sensible gun control legislation is wanted, is needed, and is doable. No gun should be sold without a background check. Every gun should be safely secured when not in use and immediately reported if lost or stolen. Weapons of war should be treated differently than weapons of sport. And common-sense restrictions need to be in place to reduce the public health crisis in America—mass shooting, suicides, domestic violence murders—all linked to our current gun policies.
As people of faith, we aspire to a better community; we affirm that the students are right in calling for change; and we are committed now to act to make it so. Those who oppose any change in the status quo employ three tactics: deny, deflect, and delay. They will deny the severity of the issue, claiming mass shootings are rare and outlier incidents. I’m sorry; the loss of any child is one too many. They will deflect the argument, claiming we don’t understand the nuances around automatic weaponry; we should only focus on mental health issues or better armed security issues or police preparedness issues. Do not let yourself be cowed into silence or deflected from the main issue—the issue is guns; the issue is American laws that no longer serve our national ideals because they willing sacrifice our children for political posturing over the Second Amendment. As communities of faith, we will talk and listen; we will learn and pray. But we will not be silent. We will not acquiesce. We will not accept a blanket refusal that rejects any change. We aspire, we affirm, and we will act.
From Patrice Fowler-Searcy:
April 20, 1999 is a date that will forever be etched in our collective memories. That was the day the nation witnessed injured and traumatized students and teachers flee from the carnage and devastation that had taken place in Columbine High School. We have witnessed and heard of school shootings that have taken place all across this country since that time, Virginia Tech, Sandy Hook, and many others that have either gone unnoticed or where the body count wasn’t high enough to elicit outrage and today we gather to remember what occurred in Parkland, Florida a month ago today.
It’s been almost 20 years since Columbine and as a country, we are still being held captive by the NRA and the gun industry who recklessly espouse that the 2nd amendment should be protected above all else. But we know this isn’t really about the right to bear arms; this is about money—making money at the expense of innocent, vulnerable, seemingly expendable lives that are threatened and sacrificed every day in schools, churches, at concerts, in neighborhoods, homes and on the street all across this nation.
So, we have gathered this morning in solidarity to remember and pray, as have so many, for so many years, in so many cities across this country; but what makes this time different is the children, the youth are leading us as they walk out of schools and into legislative offices demanding that sensible gun laws be passed and enacted. Youth are leading us to also be courageous, to stand up, speak up and by any means necessary to let our political leaders know, beyond a shadow of any doubt, that enough is enough. It is time for us as people of faith to storm Washington, DC and demand that sensible gun laws be enacted; to demand federal, state and local background checks whenever and wherever a firearm is sold; to demand that the sell of automatic guns and bump stocks be banned permanently; to demand that our schools be made safe so that intruders cannot enter in easily. It’s time for us as people of faith to unapologetically demand what is righteous and just by making our voices heard every time an election is held by voting for candidates who have the courage, fortitude, and integrity to legislate and vote for what is in the best interest of everyone.
See you Saturday! xo