“We can end gun violence.”
That’s the message celebrities, including Amy Schumer, Julianne Moore and Jennifer Aniston, President Barack Obama, gun violence survivors and mothers want you to hear.
The latest video produced by Everytown for Gun Safety, a group founded in 2014 that advocates for gun violence prevention, is a mashup of clips of about 30 cultural icons and 30 survivors or moms saying the words “we can end gun violence.” The group is encouraging viewers to submit their own clips that will be added to the video.
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This is not the first time Everytown for Gun Safety has enlisted celebrities to help promote its message. In 2012, after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting that killed 20 children and six adults in Newtown, Connecticut, the group released a video of Beyonce, Will Ferrell, John Legend and others asking Americans to “demand a plan” for gun control.
But little change has happened at the national level. Just last week, the Senate voted down two gun control bills, one that would have prevented anyone on the terrorist watch list from purchasing a gun and another that would have required background checks for all online purchases of firearms.
The new video, released Wednesday, appears five days before the third anniversary of the Sandy Hook shooting and a week after the mass shooting that killed 14 people in San Bernardino, California.
Despite little action in Congress following these shootings, Stacey Radnor, deputy communications director of Everytown for Gun Safety, said more and more of the public has shown support for the movement.
“Just this year, Everytown for Gun Safety has grown from 2.4 million supporters to more than 3.5 million supporters,” Radnor told MSNBC. “The video is just an example of the ever-growing base of Americans who are sharing their voices and getting involved in this movement.”
Everytown for Gun Safety, along with its partner Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, will lead “Orange Walks” this weekend in nearly 100 cities to honor gun violence victims and promote gun control measures. “Thoughts and prayers alone from lawmakers aren’t enough: we demand stronger gun laws to protect our children, families and communities,” said Shannon Watts, founder of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America in a statement. Watts also appears in the “We can end gun violence” video. RELATED: Moms as a powerful political demographic Everytown for Gun Safety also released a “Year in Review” report that outlines the successes it has seen in state legislation this year, including required background checks in 18 states and defeated bills in 16 states that would have allowed permitless carry systems. The report says the states the group will prioritize in 2016 are Nevada and Maine, where required background checks will appear on the ballots.
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