Community Corner

Anti-Gun Violence Supporters Advocate for 'Sensible' Firearm Legislation

Members of Organizing for Action and Moms Demand Action groups rallied in Dearborn to petition Congress for tighter gun regulations.

Judy Schlueter still recalls the moment when she found out her 20-year-old grandson Ramondo was shot and killed in 2007.

"He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time," she said. "When a loved one is taken from you suddenly, the grief is compounded in many significant ways. It's something that never leaves you."

Schlueter was among the roughly 30 people rallying at Lindberg Elementary School in Dearborn on Saturday to demand that Congress and state lawmakers implement greater restrictions on guns. The rally was organized by the Ann Arbor chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, President Obama's Organizing for Action (OFA) group, and the Mayors Against Illegal Guns coalition.

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"We are here to remember the victims of mass shootings at Columbine High School, Sandy Hook Elementary School, the Cinemark Theater in Aurora, Colo., and countless others, but we're also here to prevent this from happening again," Sandy North, chairwoman of the OFA regional gun violence prevention planning committee said.

The group’s goal is to bring “common sense” to gun laws by banning assault weapons and online ammunition sales, as well as universal background check on all gun and ammunition purchases.

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Last week, the U.S. Senate rejected a bipartisan plan to expand background checks for gun buyers.

"We don't see the Senate's actions as a defeat, we see it as a way to work at bringing stronger legislation before our elected officials," North said.

U.S. Rep. John Conyers, D-District 13, a vocal advocate for tighter gun regulations told rally members in attendance not to get discouraged with the bill's defeat.

"We lost the Senate vote by six votes, but we're coming back," he said.

"I'm a long distance runner. I'm used to long discussions on issues," Conyers added, pointing out that it took him 15 years to pass the Martin Luther King Bill establishing King's birthday as a national holiday.

Conyers said he would like advocates for both sides of the gun control legislation to work together.

"I'm not talking about a debate. A debate focuses more on the oratory skill of argumentation. What would happen if we brought the gun advocates in here to talk and share their thoughts in an orderly way?" Conyers asked in reference to the dozens of pro-gun supporters that were protesting outside of the school.

Anne Phillip Hofmeister, assistant president of Michigan Open Carry, Inc. said she feels tighter gun regulations will make citizens less safe.

"Not everyone wants more restrictions," she said. "It's not just the criminals who have guns. Good, law-abiding people have guns too, and use them responsibly and safely."

Gun advocate John Roehrig agreed, stating "When you make an area gun-free, it exposes more people to criminal violence. Just like speed limits don't deter speeders, gun-free zones don't deter criminals."

The rally was one of dozens being held across the state and country to encourage citizens to speak out against gun lobbyists in Washington, specifically the NRA, an advocacy group that is openly opposed to gun control.

"We are tired of being the 'silent majority,'" North said. "We are not the silent majority. We are the active, demand to be heard, demand action majority."


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