“If you listen closely, you will hear the cry” for an end to gun violence “from our loved ones in our churches, synagogues, schools and now, our grocery stores,” Raymond Whitfield told hundreds gathered near the Washington Monument for the March for Our Lives rally.
“Three families right here in Minnesota lost precious fourth-grade relatives in the shooting at Robb Elementary School.”
“MCC has urged Gov. Tim Walz to call a special session and pass Safe Schools legislation.”
Catholic leaders in an online discussion June 8 urged the faithful to look at gun violence as a pro-life issue, address the roots of racist thinking that promotes such violence and press for commonsense gun laws.
Gary Hill, a youth care worker and two youth agreed that gun violence in the city has dramatically escalated over the years, with more bystanders becoming victims.
In the wake of recent mass shootings that have devastated local communities and the nation at large, several U.S. bishops, women’s religious orders and Catholic organizations have called for stricter federal gun control measures, and state Catholic conferences have rallied behind local measures attempting to curb the spate of gun violence.
“Even as we offer solidarity through lament and prayer, we refuse to accept a world in which thoughts and prayers are offered without meaningful policy change to address the crisis of gun violence in this country,” said the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas in a May 25 statement.
Authorities say the mass shooting that left 10 people dead was racially motivated.
