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Statement

STATEMENT OF KRISTIN ROWE-FINKBEINER, Executive Director, MomsRising.org, On the U.S. Senate’s Failure to Pass Common-Sense Gun Safety Legislation

April 17, 2013
Gun Control

Lisa Lederer, 202-371-1996

America’s Moms “Deeply Disappointed” in Senate Vote on Background Checks, MomsRising.org Vows to Continue Pressing for Common-Sense Gun Safety Laws
“We are deeply disappointed that the U.S. Senate voted down the Manchin-Toomey bill that would have required what 90 percent of Americans support – legislation requiring comprehensive background checks for purchasing firearms.
 
“Senators Joe Manchin and Patrick Toomey showed great courage and wisdom, as well as bipartisan spirit, in working together to craft this common-sense bill. The Senators who voted against this bill did so out of unreasonable and cowardly fear of the NRA leadership.
 
“With more than 30 people killed by guns in our nation each day, including children like the small baby in Chicago and high schooler Hadiyah Pendleton, and with the recent Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy, we are more determined than ever to move forward common-sense gun laws.
 
“At MomsRising we've heard an outpouring of concern about the epidemic of gun violence in our nation and an outpouring of support for better gun safety laws. We heard from people across the political spectrum, including from NRA members, that we need common sense gun laws to reduce the terrible toll gun violence takes on our communities each and every day. We will not let a single vote in the Senate weaken our resolve.
 
“We are not giving up. MomsRising.org and its more than one million members, and people across this nation who care about the safety of their kids, their families and their communities, will continue to fight until we have common-sense gun safety laws in this country.
 
“We owe it our families.  We owe it to our communities.  We owe it to each other.”
 

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MomsRising.org is an on-the-ground and online grassroots organization of more than a million people who are working to increase family economic security, decrease discrimination against women and moms, and to build a nation where businesses and families can thrive. Established in 2006, MomsRising and its members are organizing and speaking out to improve public policy and to change the national dialogue on issues that are critically important to America’s families, including criminal justice reform, immigration policy reform, and gun safety. MomsRising is working for paid family and medical leave, affordable, high quality childcare and early learning, and for an end to the wage and hiring discrimination which penalizes women — particularly moms and women of color — and so many others. MomsRising advocates for access to healthy food for all kids, health care for all, earned sick days, and breastfeeding rights so that all children can have a healthy start. MomsRising maintains a Spanish language website: MamásConPoder.org. Sign up online at www.MomsRising.org — and follow us on our blog, and on Twitter and Facebook.