Gun Violence Resources
image: NPR. Helen H. Richardson/MediaNews Group/Denver Post via Getty Images
To cap off our exhibition, Taking Aim: Art that addresses gun violence, we would like to provide resources that underline the discussion on gun violence in this country. Our board member Kathryn Turley-Sonne recently attended the webinar Disarming America: Museums Take on Gun Control. The panelists included Earl Mowatt from the OnePULSE Foundation and Jack Flack from Ford’s Theater, who shared their experience and insight. Sites of Conscience, who organized the talk, provided many resources that we thought we would share.
Some of the recommended sources include Bloomberg News, who presents data about America having more guns than other countries, while NPR questions why most mass shooters are men. There is evidence that two-thirds of mass shootings are linked to domestic violence, while hate crimes are attributable to over 10,300 crimes involving firearms yearly.
There have already been more than 11,500 people killed by gun violence in the first three months of 2023 and the numbers continue to rise. Just today, as I write this, another shooting occurred, leaving five people dead. How did we get here? Time Magazine presents a history of America’s obsession with assault rifles, and how guns are marketed and sold in America. The truth is, most people want stricter gun laws, but there is a fear that their guns will be taken away. Somehow the sanctity of guns have become more important than the lives of our children and loved ones who continue to get gunned down.
graph: apnews.com
There are numerous organizations that are focused on gun violence prevention. We learned through our interview with Kyleigh Jordan, who has organized several March For Our Lives events in Ohio, that the term “gun control” makes people feel that someone is going to take away their firearms, whereas everyone agrees that there is a need for gun violence prevention.
The organization Change The Ref, founded by Manny and Patricia Oliver, have exemplified the power of using art to raise awareness. The Lost Class campaign, featured below, was created in 2021 to shine a light on the 3,044 students missing from that year’s graduating class due to senseless gun violence.
“The Lost Class” campaign by Change The Ref
Image: Michael Fleshman
The Washington Post explains how the Second Amendment has been reinterpreted to protect individual rights, but as Manny Oliver explains in his interview on our podcast, the Second Amendment makes little sense today. “If you want to drive safely from one place to another, you don’t buy a formula one race car. You make sure that it goes with what you need.” This is an incredibly logical explanation for the need to ban automatic weapons, and yet, here we are. Again and again.
In addition to Change The Ref, there are numerous organizations who are working and organizing to change our gun laws. Organizations such as March For Our Lives, Everytown, Mom’s Demand Action, and Sandy Hook Promise, to name a few. Please consider supporting them. Please vote for sensical gun laws, and for leaders who support those smart laws. We hope that you have been inspired by the incredible work that our featured artists have created to educate, inspire, and elicit conversation around this topic. Collectively, we can make a difference.
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”