On Tuesday, April 17th, the Colorado Capitol hosted a sit-in against gun violence, with participation from thousands of women. The event was organized by Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, a grassroots movement that advocates for common-sense gun laws to prevent gun violence.
The sit-in was held in response to the recent mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, which left 17 people dead and sparked a national conversation about gun control. The participants called on lawmakers to take action to prevent gun violence, including passing universal background checks, banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, and prohibiting domestic abusers from owning guns.
The event began with a rally outside the Capitol building, where speakers shared their personal stories of how gun violence has affected their lives. Many of the speakers were mothers who had lost children to gun violence or who were fighting to protect their children from the threat of gun violence.
After the rally, the participants moved inside the Capitol building and staged a sit-in in the rotunda. They held signs and chanted slogans like “Not one more” and “Enough is enough.” The sit-in lasted for several hours, during which time the participants met with lawmakers and urged them to take action on gun control.
The sit-in was part of a larger movement of women who are speaking out against gun violence. In March, hundreds of thousands of people participated in the March for Our Lives, a student-led protest against gun violence that was organized in response to the Parkland shooting. The march was one of the largest protests in U.S. history and was led by students who had survived the shooting.
The participation of women in the fight against gun violence is significant because women are often the victims of gun violence. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than half of all female homicide victims are killed by intimate partners or family members. Women are also more likely than men to be killed by a gun in the context of domestic violence.
The sit-in at the Colorado Capitol was a powerful demonstration of the growing movement for gun control in America. It showed that women are leading the charge and that they are not willing to back down until lawmakers take action to prevent gun violence. As one of the participants said, “We’re not going to stop until we see change.”
