I have been a New York City public school teacher for the past thirteen years and, during that time, I have attended my share of funerals for past students.  Way too many of our children have become casualties of war in this feud between gun companies and our federal government.  The sad part is that it seems that the gun companies are winning the battle because more and more guns are becoming available on our streets and Congress seems to think that if we don’t talk about it, it will all go away.  See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil.

I’m here to speak for all of the mothers, fathers, family members, friends, and educators who have buried their children due to the terrible gun violence that plagues our communities like a thief that comes in the night taking our hearts and our futures.  We will never forget any of the heinous acts of violence that have been caused by guns and have taken the lives of our loved ones.  The sorrow and pain of losing them is tattooed across our hearts and souls for all eternity.

We don’t want to celebrate the anniversaries of when children and loved ones were killed by gunfire.  We want to celebrate their graduations, wedding anniversaries, accomplishments, and their futures.  Enough is enough!  We will not stand idly by while our elected officials tuck their tails between their legs and allow private interests to dictate the safety of our children within our streets or our communities.

The anger rising in our chests is fueling our actions and we will not be deterred from our cause.  We want action and we want it now!  This includes stricter gun control laws and more stringent screening of individuals seeking to purchase firearms.  As a collective, our votes and our voices will get results and we will fight to end gun violence.  We will not be silenced and the fire in our bellies will not be extinguished.  Enough is enough, we are tired of burying our children!

This post is part of the project, "Sorrow, Anger, ACTION! - A Gathering of Voices Against Gun Violence," organized by MomsRising, PICO Network, UltraViolet, Children's Defense Fund and the National Network to End Domestic Violence.