A letter to the NRA

Photo credit: steved_np3 (stock.xchng)

I wrote this letter to the president of the NRA, Wayne LaPierre. I mailed it today.

Dear Mr. LaPierre,

Last week’s mass murder of 26 people – 20 of them children between six and seven – in Newtown, Connecticut has broken America’s heart – mine included.

This kind of tragedy, we know, has happened too often in our country before – in Colorado, Arizona, Oregon, Texas, California, Wisconsin, Virginia, and too many other places.

This time, it’s different. This time, most of the dead are children.

I am not here to play the blame game – a game in which no one wins. I do want to implore the National Rifle Association to speak up.

The NRA is vocal when it comes to gun rights. Now it’s time to be equally as vocal about gun responsibilities.

To own a gun is to possess the power to kill – not just animals, but your fellow human beings. We would hope that all gun owners take this responsibility seriously – but we’re not there yet.

America doesn’t want the NRA to be quiet, or just shrug and say, “Guns don’t kill people, people kill people.” That is technically true, but no one can deny that guns (especially automatic and semi-automatic weapons) make it easier to kill many people at once.

What are we going to do about this?

I would like to see the NRA take a stronger stand against gun violence of all kinds, not just mass shootings but the tragically common one-on-one events, from gang rivals waging war on each other to one spouse shooting the other in a fit of rage. I would like to see the NRA implore its members and all gun owners to follow basic safety rules – and take extra precautions if they know anyone who is mentally ill or unstable.

When good Americans stand up for gun responsibility, it will lessen the chance of terrible events like this from happening again.

Thank you for reading,

Sincerely,

Jennie Brown Hakim