top of page
Search

Boulder, Atlanta, H.R. 8, H.R. 1446, Marjorie Taylor Greene & Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the Supreme Court!

  • Writer: Don Lichterman
    Don Lichterman
  • Mar 23, 2021
  • 6 min read
Criminal Justice Report: Gun Safety, Death Penalty Focus, Private Prisons & the Criminal Justice System
Supreme Court agrees to hear death penalty case against Boston marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and as families in Atlanta and countless other communities are still grieving after recent tragic shootings, we're learning the details of the heartbreaking mass shooting in which at least ten people were shot and killed at a supermarket in Boulder, Colorado.
UP TO DATE & TOP WORLD NEWS HEADLINES EVERY DAY AT NOON AND AT 6PM EST




Criminal Justice Report: Gun Safety, Death Penalty Focus, Private Prisons & the Criminal Justice System - EVERY TUESDAY AFTERNOON AT 1PM EST

We need more than thoughts and prayers from our elected leaders to end gun violence in our communities. That's why we're demanding action, and we want you to join us.


Right now, no matter where you live, there are many ways you can take action with Everytown for Gun Safety and our local Moms Demand Action volunteer chapters in all 50 states and D.C.



Two life-saving pieces of gun safety legislation will get a vote in the House this week!


Together, H.R. 8 and H.R. 1446 bills will require background checks on all gun sales and address the Charleston loophole, closing gaps in federal law that create an extreme safety risk to everyone in the United States.



Our nation's background check system has been put under unprecedented strain during the COVID-19 pandemic, making the need for these bills to become law even more pressing.

  • H.R. 8 will require background checks on all gun sales.

  • H.R. 1446 will address the Charleston loophole, named so because the Mother Emanuel AME Church shooter exploited it to acquire his firearm. It allows gun sales to proceed without a completed background check if three business days have passed; just last year, thousands of guns were sold to prohibited purchasers because of it.







With President Biden in office, our movement has a strong partner in the White House after four long years—and momentum for strong gun safety laws is already building.

This week, the House of Representatives introduced H.R. 8—a bill that requires background checks on all gun sales. In the coming weeks, we must do everything we can to ensure that life-saving background check legislation advances through Congress and arrives on President Biden's desk ready to be signed into law.


Getting background checks signed into law will require the full power of our grassroots movement. Since the introduction of H.R. 8 this week, we have already made more than 15,000 constituent calls to members of Congress, but with the House voting on it next week, we can't let up now.




The NRA has done everything in its power to stand in the way of common-sense gun safety laws that would save lives. Its bankruptcy announcement is a desperate attempt to avoid accountability for years of alleged fraud and illegal self dealing. But while the NRA's legal, financial, and political woes have only grown over the past year, the NRA continues to spread fear to sell more guns and promote dangerous gun bills across the country.



For decades, the NRA has peddled the far-right's dangerous conspiracy theories, spread fear to sell more guns, and fought life-saving gun safety measures at every turn. But this year, we have the best opportunity in a generation to defeat the NRA's dangerous agenda and pass life-saving gun laws.


With the NRA and its extremist allies continuing to pursue their dangerous "guns everywhere" agenda, your sustained support will be a huge advantage for our movement and one we will need to meet this moment.


Holding the NRA accountable and defeating its dangerous agenda will require a steady, predictable source of support.

Amanda Chase

From the Virginia Tech massacre in 2007, to the Virginia Beach shooting in 2019, to the daily gun violence in our Commonwealth, we have been hit hard by gun violence in recent decades.


And every death is painfully hard to take.


But in the last few years, Virginia has made significant progress on gun violence prevention -- by expanding background checks, implementing an Extreme Risk law, and enhancing protections for domestic violence survivors.


That’s why it’s so frustrating that Amanda Chase -- the frontrunner for the GOP nomination for Governor -- wants to eliminate all the protections we fought so hard to implement.



Terry McAuliffe 's position couldn’t be further from Chase’s. Terry McAuliffe fought a Republican legislature to pass the first meaningful gun violence prevention laws in decades, and Terry McAuliffe proposed banning the sale of assault weapons. Terry McAuliffe wants to strengthen the laws we already have in place, not erase them.


On the other hand, Amanda Chase wants to turn our Commonwealth into a warzone with fewer safety restrictions and more guns on our streets and in our neighborhoods.

It’s sickening.

Marjorie Taylor Greene Hosts Gun Giveaway After Biden Calls on Congress to Pass Gun Reform Legislation

Our companies are known for creating products that enhance people's lives. Through Sunset Corporation of America and its companies, we’re equally dedicated to improving lives.  Our commitment extends to helping local communities, fostering better educational systems, supporting the arts and culture, helping disadvantaged youth, protecting and improving the environment, animal welfare, wildlife issues and encouraging employee volunteerism.

The Sustainable Action Network (SAN), A Don Lichterman non-profit organization dedicated to building a global community raising awareness of corruption, injustice and the need for action across a full range of issues impacting people and animal/wildlife welfare around the world, such as conservation, climate change, campaign law, lobbying, government action and rescue work. SAN’s vision is to create safer world, free from political, environmental, and social oppression, where all the inhabitants of Earth can live in harmony within their own natural environments. Our commitment extends to helping local communities, fostering better educational systems, supporting the arts and culture, helping disadvantaged youth, protecting and improving the environment, animal welfare, wildlife issues and encouraging employee volunteerism.

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY

  • Important Dates & Events

  • Important Films, TV & Videos

  • Privatization & Corporate Responsibility

  • Wild Leaks & Environmental Crime

  • Labeling & Transparency

  • Private Prisons

  • Cruelty Free

  • Environment & Climate Issues

  • Finance & Economy

  • Gun Safety

  • Death Penalty

  • Kids & Learning

  • Bills, Laws & Protections

ANIMAL RESCUES WELFARE, CRIMES & ABUSE

  • Animal Crimes & Abuse

  • Dog Fighting

  • Hope For Paws

  • Flying Fur Animal Rescue

  • Official PETA TV

  • Animal Testing & the Animal Testing Weekly Report

  • Rescues & Rescue TV

  • Bills, Laws & Protections

  • The Ultimate Wildlife Rescue Guide

  • Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries

  • Moving Giants

  • Beluga Whale Sanctuary

  • Umah Lumba Rehabilitation, Release and Retirement Center

PROTECT OUR WILDLIFE

  • Stop Wildlife Crime

  • Poaching

  • Trophy Hunting

  • Whales & A Whale of a Week!

  • Dolphins & Dolphin Outlook

  • Dolphin Captivity, Hunting Results

  • Elephant Captivity, Hunting Results

  • Wild Leaks & Environmental Crime

  • Oceania

  • Songs For Freedom

  • Official PETA TV

  • Wildlife Aid TV

  • FOUR Paws International

  • Animals Voices & Animals Asia

  • Rescues & Rescue TV

  • 8 Billion Trees

  • Bills, Laws & Protections

GOVERNMENT & POLITICS, ELECTIONS, BILLS & LAWS

  • Latest Polls Of The Georgia Senate Runoffs

  • Let My People Vote

  • Let America Vote

  • Presidential Platform on Animal Issues with Joe Biden

  • Presidential Platform on Animal Wellness and Protection

  • New Jersey is the Humane State


National Gun Violence Week, Brenda Mitchell, Shannon Watts, NRA, Share Your Story, Gun Safety Report

  • Writer: Don Lichterman
    Don Lichterman
  • Feb 24, 2021
  • 6 min read

Have you been personally impacted by gun violence? Consider sharing your unique lived experience in your own words by submitting your story. The voices, faces, and stories of survivors put a spotlight on the human toll of gun violence. Share your story

Brenda Mitchell, Everytown Survivor Network

Today is the first day of both National Gun Violence Survivors Week and Black History Month. As a survivor of gun violence and a Black woman, these next several days hold deep importance for me.

That's because I'm remembering my son, Kenneth. In a few days, it will have been 16 years since I last spoke to him, saw his face, and called his name. He was shot and killed while trying to intervene in a fight. A single parent, Kenneth left behind three sons: Tyler, John, and Mykhi.


Kenneth was the center of our family and a role model for his younger siblings and cousins. He was responsible and considerate of the people around him, and had a very strong sense of family. He was the one who would organize a barbecue if too much time had passed between family gatherings.


It hurts to write those words. But in the gun violence prevention movement, I have found a community of fellow survivors and activists who help me and countless others understand that we are not alone in this process.



We commemorate National Gun Violence Survivors Week the first week of February because by the beginning of this month, more people are killed with guns in the United States than are killed with guns in any other high-income country in an entire year. Many more are wounded, witness gun violence, or have loved ones who experienced gun violence, leaving 58 percent of American adults—including 68 percent of Black and Latino Americans—as survivors of gun violence.


But Don, know this: survivors of gun violence have experienced loss to a degree that absolutely no one should, and even still, we are resilient. America's gun violence survivors, despite experiencing incredible trauma, are leading work on the ground to support other survivors and advocate for common-sense gun safety measures that save lives.



As I reflect on the history and resilience of my communities this month—as both a gun violence survivor and a Black woman in America—I know there is still much more to be done to achieve racial justice and an end to gun violence in this country, two issues that are deeply interconnected. This Black History Month and beyond is a time for us to highlight the important work of Black survivors and activists, as well as frontline workers, health care workers, and faith leaders, and to make clear why we must center Black lives in our advocacy.


So as we continue this work, I will be thinking about Kenneth. I never stop missing him or wanting him. I am grateful for the love we shared, the son he was to me. I thank God for him.

His sons feel the loss; they struggle, but they keep getting up. He will always be what he has been to us.

We love you, Ken Ken. You were our love. You were our heaven.







For decades, the NRA has peddled the far-right's dangerous conspiracy theories, spread fear to sell more guns, and fought life-saving gun safety measures at every turn. But this year, we have the best opportunity in a generation to defeat the NRA's dangerous agenda and pass life-saving gun laws.


To do that, we've set a bold fundraising goal to make life-saving progress this year: 150 new monthly donors a day for the remainder of February for the NRA's 150th year.



With the NRA and its extremist allies continuing to pursue their dangerous "guns everywhere" agenda, your sustained support will be a huge advantage for our movement and one we will need to meet this moment.


Holding the NRA accountable and defeating its dangerous agenda will require a steady, predictable source of support. Help us make the NRA's 150th year its worst year yet by becoming a new monthly donor.

Amanda Chase

From the Virginia Tech massacre in 2007, to the Virginia Beach shooting in 2019, to the daily gun violence in our Commonwealth, we have been hit hard by gun violence in recent decades. And every death is painfully hard to take.


But in the last few years, Virginia has made significant progress on gun violence prevention -- by expanding background checks, implementing an Extreme Risk law, and enhancing protections for domestic violence survivors.


That’s why it’s so frustrating that Amanda Chase -- the frontrunner for the GOP nomination for Governor -- wants to eliminate all the protections we fought so hard to implement.


My position couldn’t be further from Chase’s. I fought a Republican legislature to pass the first meaningful gun violence prevention laws in decades, and I’ve proposed banning the sale of assault weapons. I want to strengthen the laws we already have in place, not erase them.

On the other hand, Amanda Chase wants to turn our Commonwealth into a warzone with fewer safety restrictions and more guns on our streets and in our neighborhoods.

It’s sickening.


I’m going to fight with every ounce of energy I’ve got -- but I’m only as strong as the support I get from you. Please support the campaign however you can.



Our companies are known for creating products that enhance people's lives. Through Sunset Corporation of America and its companies, we’re equally dedicated to improving lives.  Our commitment extends to helping local communities, fostering better educational systems, supporting the arts and culture, helping disadvantaged youth, protecting and improving the environment, animal welfare, wildlife issues and encouraging employee volunteerism.

The Sustainable Action Network (SAN), A Don Lichterman non-profit organization dedicated to building a global community raising awareness of corruption, injustice and the need for action across a full range of issues impacting people and animal/wildlife welfare around the world, such as conservation, climate change, campaign law, lobbying, government action and rescue work. SAN’s vision is to create safer world, free from political, environmental, and social oppression, where all the inhabitants of Earth can live in harmony within their own natural environments. Our commitment extends to helping local communities, fostering better educational systems, supporting the arts and culture, helping disadvantaged youth, protecting and improving the environment, animal welfare, wildlife issues and encouraging employee volunteerism.

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY

  • Important Dates & Events

  • Important Films, TV & Videos

  • Privatization & Corporate Responsibility

  • Wild Leaks & Environmental Crime

  • Labeling & Transparency

  • Private Prisons

  • Cruelty Free

  • Environment & Climate Issues

  • Finance & Economy

  • Gun Safety

  • Death Penalty

  • Kids & Learning

  • Bills, Laws & Protections

ANIMAL RESCUES WELFARE, CRIMES & ABUSE

  • Animal Crimes & Abuse

  • Dog Fighting

  • Hope For Paws

  • Flying Fur Animal Rescue

  • Official PETA TV

  • Animal Testing & the Animal Testing Weekly Report

  • Rescues & Rescue TV

  • Bills, Laws & Protections

  • The Ultimate Wildlife Rescue Guide

  • Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries

  • Moving Giants

  • Beluga Whale Sanctuary

  • Umah Lumba Rehabilitation, Release and Retirement Center

PROTECT OUR WILDLIFE

  • Stop Wildlife Crime

  • Poaching

  • Trophy Hunting

  • Whales & A Whale of a Week!

  • Dolphins & Dolphin Outlook

  • Dolphin Captivity, Hunting Results

  • Elephant Captivity, Hunting Results

  • Wild Leaks & Environmental Crime

  • Oceania

  • Songs For Freedom

  • Official PETA TV

  • Wildlife Aid TV

  • FOUR Paws International

  • Animals Voices & Animals Asia

  • Rescues & Rescue TV

  • 8 Billion Trees

  • Bills, Laws & Protections

GOVERNMENT & POLITICS, ELECTIONS, BILLS & LAWS

  • Latest Polls Of The Georgia Senate Runoffs

  • Let My People Vote

  • Let America Vote

  • Presidential Platform on Animal Issues with Joe Biden

  • Presidential Platform on Animal Wellness and Protection

  • New Jersey is the Humane State


Sandy Hook, Erica Lafferty & Donald Trump Jr. eyes run for NRA leadership on the Gun Safety Report!

  • Writer: Don Lichterman
    Don Lichterman
  • Dec 14, 2020
  • 8 min read
In Remembrance, Will you please sign our special card to honor the precious lives taken on 12/14/12, and every day since, by gun violence?

Eight years ago, our children and loved ones were murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary. The holes in our hearts will never be filled.


For the eight-year mark of that terrible day, will you help us honor them – and every life taken by preventable gun violence – by signing our special remembrance card?

Sandy Hook Promise is a national nonprofit organization founded and led by several family members whose loved ones were killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14, 2012. Based in Newtown, Connecticut, our intent is to honor all victims of gun violence by turning our tragedy into a moment of transformation. By empowering youth to “know the signs” and uniting all people who value the protection of children, we can take meaningful actions in schools, homes, and communities to prevent gun violence and stop the tragic loss of life.

Every number you see below represents a person, often a child, with hopes, dreams, potential, and loved ones who cherished them. Children and families in the U.S. are facing a vast problem, but you can help. Share these facts, know the signs, and act to protect them before it’s too late.

  1. EACH DAY 8 children die from gun violence in America. Another 32 are shot and injured.1

  2. Firearms are the second leading cause of death among American children and adolescents, after car crashes.2

  3. Firearm deaths occur at a rate more than 3 times higher than drownings.3

  4. The U.S. has had 1,316 school shootings since 1970 and these numbers are increasing. 18% of school shootings have taken place since the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School in December 2012.3

  5. In a comprehensive study of school shootings from 1974 to 2000 conducted by the Secret Service and Department of Education 93% of school shooters planned the attack in advance.4

  6. In 4 out of 5 school shootings, at least one other person had knowledge of the attacker’s plan but failed to report it.4

  7. Guns used in about 68% of gun-related incidents at schools were taken from the home, a friend or a relative.4

  8. A study found that 77% of active shooters spent a week or longer planning their attack.6

  9. Nearly all mass attackers in 2018 made threatening or concerning communications and more than 75% elicited concern from others prior to carrying out their attacks.5

  10. In almost every documented case of active shooters, warning signs were given off.6

  11. 2018 had the most school shootings on record, but U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security research shows that if we “know the signs” of gun violence, we can prevent it and reverse the trend.5

  12. The majority of individuals with diagnosed mental illness do not engage in violence against others.7

  13. 70% of people who die by suicide tell someone their plans or give some other type of warning signs.8

  14. 39% of parents wrongly believe children don’t know where a gun is stored.9

  15. An estimated 4.6 million American children live in a home where at least one gun is kept loaded and unlocked.10

  16. 17 states have enacted Extreme Risk Laws, the majority being implemented following the school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in 2018.11

Sources

  1. CDC, WISQARS accessed on 1/28/19 at https://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/index.html

  2. https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMsr1804754, N Engl J Med 2018; 379:2468-2475 DOI: 10.1056/NEJMsr1804754

  3. https://www.thetrace.org/2019/08/children-teens-gun-deaths-data/

  4. Vossekuil, et al, 2002

  5. https://www.secretservice.gov/data/press/reports/USSS_FY2019_MAPS.pdf

  6. Silver, J., Simons, A., & Craun, S. (2018). A Study of the Pre-Attack Behaviors of Active Shooters in the United States Between 2000 – 2013. Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, D.C. 20535

  7. https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/Mass-Violence-in-America_8-6-19.pdf

  8. Robins, E., Gassner, S., Kayes, J., Wilkinson, R.H. & Murphy, G.E. (1959). The communication of suicidal intent: A study of 134 consecutive cases of successful (completed) suicide. Am J Psychiatry, 115 (8), 724-733.

  9. http://www.aappublications.org/news/2017/05/23/Firearms052317

  10. Azrael, D., Cohen, J., Salhi, C. et al. J Urban Health (2018) 95: 295. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11524-018-0261-7 Accessed on 1/29/19&nbsp

  11. http://bit.ly/2lPtrcy

Gun violence was already a crisis in the United States before COVID-19. More than 100 Americans were dying from gun violence every day, and over 230 more were shot and wounded.

To make matters worse, COVID-19 and a surge in gun sales have weakened the country's background check system, posing the threat of an even deadlier gun violence crisis.


During the pandemic, our nation's background check system has been overwhelmed by a record-breaking surge in gun sales. Between March and November of this year, 43 percent more checks were processed than in the same period in 2019. And Don, this unparalleled strain on the system has been rife with consequences.


Here are just some of the things we're dealing with:

  • By the end of 2020, an estimated 600,000 background checks will have taken longer than three business days. Because of the Charleston loophole, all sales that are delayed past this deadline can legally proceed. That means at least 7,500 illegal purchasers could have acquired guns this way—more than during the last two years combined.

  • Posts by people looking to buy guns on websites specializing in no-background-check gun sales have also spiked during the pandemic, nearly doubling in 2020 compared to 2019.

  • Demand has skyrocketed for ghost guns in 2020. These are unregulated do-it-yourself firearms that are not subject to background checks, do not have serial numbers, and cannot be traced when they are recovered at crime scenes.

These findings in our research make it abundantly clear that we must fix the loopholes in America's background check system.



Thank you for being a part of this movement, and thank you for taking the time to learn more about issues critical to the future of the fight to end gun violence.

Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund

In the midst of a global pandemic and a gun violence crisis, the Biden-Harris administration can and should act swiftly. Recent polling shows Americans want action now—70 percent of voters believe that gun violence is an urgent issue the federal government must address, alongside the economy and the coronavirus pandemic.



In its first 100 days, the Biden-Harris administration can use executive power to take common sense and broadly popular action. While Congressional action is necessary to fully address the gun violence crisis, the new administration can take swift steps to make meaningful progress:

  • Keep guns out of the hands of people who shouldn't have them by strengthening the background check system.

  • Prioritize solutions to the city gun violence devastating communities every day.

  • Heal a traumatized country by making schools safe, confronting armed hate and extremism, preventing suicide, and centering and supporting survivors of gun violence.

  • Collect more complete and timely data on gun deaths and injuries, and lay the groundwork for modern firearm technology that protects the public from gun violence.


Soon, we'll have a president who will take the action we've long needed.


Thank you for being a part of this movement and for taking the time to learn more about the future of gun safety.

Erica Lafferty - Everytown Survivor Network

Eight years ago today, a gunman shot and killed 20 young children and six educators at Sandy Hook School in Newtown, Connecticut.


My mom, Principal Dawn Lafferty Hochsprung, was gunned down trying to protect her students and staff.


Since that terrible day, it's been eight years of mourning, but also eight years of fighting for an end to gun violence. Eight years ago, I made a pledge to never stop fighting. And now I'm asking you: Will you join me and pledge to fight for an end to gun violence in 2021?


I'm fighting for an end to the gun violence that kills more than 100 Americans every day and wounds hundreds more. I'm fighting for an end to the gun lobby's control over our elected leaders.


I'm fighting for a future where our children are not traumatized by monthly active shooter drills. And I'm fighting for a future in which our concerts and bars, our houses of worship, and places of work are safe from the threat of gun violence.


After the shooting at Sandy Hook School, Congress had a chance to enact a strong background checks bill to help prevent future tragedies.


But NRA-backed politicians blocked it. And then the same thing happened after the tragic shooting in Las Vegas. And Parkland. And El Paso. And Dayton. And so many others. And as a result, the daily gun violence in this country persists and far too many families are left to face tragedy.


But, the work that we have done this year has put momentum on our side. This year, we have elected the strongest gun safety presidential ticket in history with President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris. Not only have we defeated the NRA's greatest ally in the White House, but our movement is positioned to fight for real gun safety reform with President Biden in office.


In 2021, we're going to keep up the fight to end gun violence in America, and I need to know if you're still with us: Please, pledge to stand alongside me as we fight to break the NRA's hold on power and end gun violence in 2021.


Thank you for continuing to fight alongside me,

Business Insider reported today that Donald Trump Jr. may be eyeing a run for the NRA's chief leadership position.

It's hard to believe that the NRA may soon be led by someone even more extreme than Wayne LaPierre, but evidently that is a very real possibility.



We need your help to make sure that we have the resources necessary to defeat the NRA's dangerous and extreme agenda. Make an urgent contribution to Everytown today.

Take Action, Responsibility & Wildlife...
"Corporations Are People My Friend."
Our companies are known for creating products that enhance people's lives.  Through Sunset Corporation of America and its companies, we’re equally dedicated to improving lives.  Our commitment extends to helping local communities, fostering better educational systems, supporting the arts and culture, helping disadvantaged youth, protecting and improving the environment, animal welfare, wildlife issues and encouraging employee volunteerism.

The Sustainable Action Network (SAN), A Don Lichterman non-profit organization dedicated to building a global community raising awareness of corruption, injustice and the need for action across a full range of issues impacting people and animal/wildlife welfare around the world, such as conservation, climate change, campaign law, lobbying, government action and rescue work. SAN’s vision is to create safer world, free from political, environmental, and social oppression, where all the inhabitants of Earth can live in harmony within their own natural environments. Our commitment extends to helping local communities, fostering better educational systems, supporting the arts and culture, helping disadvantaged youth, protecting and improving the environment, animal welfare, wildlife issues and encouraging employee volunteerism.

The Sustainable Action Network (SAN), A Don Lichterman non-profit organization dedicated to building a global community raising awareness of corruption, injustice and the need for action across a full range of issues impacting people and animal/wildlife welfare around the world, such as conservation, climate change, campaign law, lobbying, government action and rescue work. SAN’s vision is to create safer world, free from political, environmental, and social oppression, where all the inhabitants of Earth can live in harmony within their own natural environments. Our commitment extends to helping local communities, fostering better educational systems, supporting the arts and culture, helping disadvantaged youth, protecting and improving the environment, animal welfare, wildlife issues and encouraging employee volunteerism.

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY
ANIMAL RESCUES WELFARE, CRIMES & ABUSE
PROTECT OUR WILDLIFE



bottom of page