Tuesday, October 3, 2017 12:30 p.m.
About the Justice League
Yesterday we woke up to the news of yet another unspeakable tragedy. We cannot imagine the grief of the 59 families who have lost their loved ones, or the fear and concern for the more than 500 injured. Our prayers and condolences to all those in pain.
While we share in the anguish of the victims, their families and the entire Las Vegas community struggling for peace – we must speak up about the epidemic of American gun proliferation. We can not be silenced by those who have compromised their humanity for dollars. We will not allow those responsible for these tragedies to say “this is not the time for politics”.
This IS the time. And the NRA is responsible.
When the National Rifle Association launched a vicious and dangerous attack on our board member Tamika Mallory this summer, Justice League NYC responded immediately. Days later we joined Women’s March in leading NRA2DOJ – a 19 mile march from the NRA in Virginia to the DOJ in Washington DC. We marched for the 20 children murdered in Newton, Connecticut. We marched for the 49 victims of the Pulse Nightclub shooting. We also marched for Philando Castile – a legal gun owner who was killed by police in Minnesota – and for whom the NRA gave not one syllable of support.
The NRA doesn’t care about gun owners – they are not a rights organization. They are a lobbying organization in the business of gun proliferation. That’s why 3% of Americans own 50% of the nation’s guns. That’s why the average US gun owner owns at least 10 guns. The NRA is in the business of making money. And the Republicans in Congress are complicit in this American genocide. The GOP takes millions in literal ‘blood money’ from the NRA each year — and they return those dollars in obstruction.
We don’t have the answers yet, but we will not rest until the NRA releases its ungodly hold on America’s lawmakers. This is a test of our collective humanity, and the strength of our resolve. We believe in the power of our people.