Health & Fitness
Granite State Moms, Family Members Deliver Mother’s Day Cards to Sen. Ayotte: “No Mother Should Have to Bury Her Child” (VIDEO)
Days Before Some Families Face Mother's Day Without Child Due to Gun Violence, Granite Staters Deliver Cards to Senator Kelly Ayotte Calling on Her to Support Life-Saving Background Checks (Video)
New Hampshire mothers, children and others publicly delivered Mother’s Day cards to Senator Kelly Ayotte’s Nashua office today, calling on the Senator to support life-saving background checks. The event was created by local gun violence prevention advocates who wanted to do something in solidarity for families who would be spending their first Mother’s Day without a child or family member due to gun violence.
Every day 33 people die from gun violence in the United States. Last month Senator Ayotte voted against bipartisan legislation proposed by NRA A-rated Senators Joe Manchin and Pat Toomey that would have closed the loopholes that make it easy for criminals and dangerous people to get guns. Over 89 percent of Senator Ayotte’s constituents support background checks.
Reading a statement on behalf of New Hampshire mothers and allies, Nona Storer of Nashua said:
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“Senator Ayotte, no mother should have to bury her child. This Mother’s Day, our hearts go out to all the mothers whose children were murdered with guns. The moms of Columbine. Virginia Tech. Tucson. Aurora. Newtown. And the mothers of the 33 people who are murdered with guns every day in this country. Now is the time for Congress to stand with moms across the country instead of with the NRA. Please support background checks for all gun sales.”
Storer and others then delivered more than 250 Mother’s Day cards signed by constituents from across the state, each bearing a similar message to the Senator. Several local community members also delivered their own, handmade cards urging Senator Ayotte to take action to reduce gun violence. Keith Thompson of Brookline, who initially proposed the event idea, was one of those.
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As he handed over his Mother's Day card and a stack from neighbors, he said: “I hope Senator Ayotte finds the courage to vote with the citizens of New Hampshire on background checks.”
Watch a video of the Mother’s Day delivery (in above slideshow).
To mark Mother’s Day, Mayors Against Illegal Guns has also released a video message by Roxanna Green, whose nine year-old daughter Christina-Taylor Green was killed in the 2011 Tucson mass shooting.
