Rep. Driscoll Signs onto Resolution Recognizing June 5th as National Gun Violence Awareness Day

PROCLAMATION

RECOGNIZING JUNE 5TH AS NATIONAL GUN VIOLENCE AWARENESS DAY This proclamation recognizes the first Friday in June as National Gun Violence Awareness Day in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to honor and remember all victims and survivors of gun violence and to declare that we as a country must do more to reduce gun violence. WHEREAS, every day, 100 Americans are killed by gun violence and more than 200 have sustained non-fatal firearm injuries over the last 5 years; and Americans are 25 times more likely to be killed with guns than people in other developed countries; and WHEREAS, support for the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens goes hand-inhand with keeping guns away from dangerous people; and local law enforcement officers know their communities best, and are best positioned to understand how to keep their citizens safe; and WHEREAS, June 2nd, 2020, would have been the 23rd birthday of Hadiya Pendleton, a teenager who marched in President Obama’s second inaugural parade and was tragically shot and killed just weeks later; and WHEREAS, by wearing orange on June 5th, Americans raise awareness about gun violence and honor the lives and lost human potential of Americans stolen by gun violence; and WHEREAS, we renew our commitment to reduce gun violence and pledge to do all we can to keep firearms out of the wrong hands, and encourage responsible gun ownership to help keep our children safe. NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Massachusetts House of Representatives recognizes the first Friday in June as National Gun Violence Awareness Day. We encourage all citizens to support their local communities’ efforts to prevent the tragic effects of gun violence and to honor and value human lives.