On November 11th my Social Justice group met with Donna Dees. She started the Million Mom March, which brought moms across the country together to protest gun violence. The march happened on the Mall in Washington D.C. on May 14, 2000. The date was placed on May 14th so that it could be in line with Mother’s Day. We talked about why she started the march and why she got so involved. She explained to us that it was because of a shooting on a Jewish Community Center In California. One of the first things that Ms. Dees told us was that the correct term was gun violence prevention, not gun control. Organizations use this term because it is what government officials use when they discuss this topic. This is because the goal is to prevent gun violence not to stop people from owning guns. We talked about the recent school shooting and other mass shootings and how it was personal for her and many others. It was personal because Ms. Dees was in fear of her children being hurt or injured by guns. Her group has now merged with the Brady campaign, which is another major gun violence prevention group. The goal of the combined organization is working to pass laws for stricter gun policies in the Senate and the House of Representatives. When we asked Ms. Dees about what will happening soon, she said that all of the gun violence prevention organizations will be having an upcoming meeting and working together in September 2016.
