November 09, 2017
| The Honorable Mitch McConnell | The Honorable Chuck Schumer |
| Majority Leader | Minority Leader |
| U.S. Senate | U.S. Senate |
| Washington, DC 20510 | Washington, DC 20510 |
| The Honorable Paul Ryan | The Honorable Nancy Pelosi |
| Speaker | Democratic Leader |
| U.S. House of Representatives | U.S. House of Representatives |
| Washington, DC 20515 | Washington, DC 20515 |
Dear Majority Leader McConnell, Leader Schumer, Speaker Ryan, and Leader Pelosi,
CC: Members of Congress
On behalf of the 50 participating organizations in the Faiths United to Prevent Gun Violence Coalition, we write to demand that you take immediate action to curb the onslaught of gun violence plaguing our nation.
On Sunday, November 5, twenty-six people, many of whom were children, were gunned down while worshipping at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas. Twenty other victims were injured, some of whom are still fighting for their lives. Together, with communities of faith across the country, our hearts ache for the victims, their loved ones, and the entire First Baptist Church community.
The massacre in Sutherland Springs is now the deadliest shooting at a house of worship in modern American history. Fourteen fatal shootings have taken place at houses of worship since 2012, including the devastating murders at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina and the Sikh Temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. It is horrifying that innocents were massacred in a house of worship once again, a terrifying reality for all people of faith in this country who believe that their congregations are sanctuaries of peace, safety, life, and love.
The tragic news is devastating, but it is not surprising. Too many students and teachers, concert-goers, community members, and people of faith in houses of worship across the country have been brutally murdered like the worshipers in Sutherland Springs. Three of the five deadliest shootings in modern American history have taken place in the last 17 months. Two of these five have occurred in just the last 35 days. Every day, guns kill 93 Americans and injure 200 more. These tragedies are alarmingly frequent, yet preventable.
As we continue to learn more about this tragedy, our questions remain. Why did the shooter have access to military grade weapons of war? Why was a man who was sentenced to a year in military prison for assaulting his wife and infant stepchild allowed to purchase an AR-15, the same weapon used by the murderers in Aurora, Orlando, Las Vegas, Sandy Hook, Umpqua, and San Bernardino? How many more innocent Americans must die before our lawmakers gather the necessary courage to stand up to the gun industry and the NRA and pass common-sense gun safety laws?
The answers to these questions go far beyond empty calls for thoughts and prayers; they require action. We read in James 2:14, “Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” Leviticus 19:16 instructs us, “Do not stand idly by while your neighbor’s blood is shed.” As organizations of faith, we strongly believe in the power of prayer. And yet, we know that prayer is a call to action rather than a substitute for it.
Although we represent many different faith traditions, we are all called to speak out against violence and advocate for common-sense solutions to stop these massacres. Accepting this charge, we urge Congress to take the following actions:
- Oppose expanded concealed carry reciprocity legislation, which seeks to turn our houses of worship into congregations armed with guns and weaponry.
- Establish universal background checks and close the private sale loophole.
- Repeal the Dickey Amendment and restore funding to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for research on gun violence.
- Close the Charleston loophole, which permits federally licensed dealers to sell guns if three business days pass without a verdict from the FBI.
- Ban the purchase and sale of assault weapons.
- Enact a gun violence restraining order law, which would temporarily prohibit an individual from purchasing or possessing firearms when deemed by a judge to pose a danger to self or others.
- Ban the purchase and sale of high capacity ammunition magazines.
- Oppose legislative efforts to deregulate the purchase and sale of gun silencers.
- Close the boyfriend loophole, which allows convicted abusers and stalkers to buy and own firearms.
We would welcome the opportunity to discuss our coalition’s legislative priorities with you. All people in our beloved country deserve to feel safe in their houses of worship and their communities; inaction is immoral and wrong. The message that we deliver today is urgent – lives are on the line and there is no time to waste.