“No More Names: National Drive to Reduce Gun Violence”

On Monday, August 26th, Mayors John Linder of Chester and Richard Lowe of Swarthmore, Chester Police Commissioner Joseph Bail Jr., Representative Thaddeus Kirkland, and local advocates will gather in Chester as part of the “No More Names: National Drive to Reduce Gun Violence” – a 25-state national bus tour over a period of 100 days aimed at urging America’s leaders to support common-sense gun policies. Participants will come together Monday to voice their continued support for comprehensive and enforceable background checks, and they will urge Philadelphia-area U.S. House members to back this tough-on-crime measure by co-sponsoring bipartisan background checks legislation in Congress.

The event is being organized by Mayors Against Illegal Guns, a bipartisan coalition of more than 1,000 mayors and 1.5 million grassroots supporters nationwide – including more than 200 member mayors and 106,000 grassroots supporters in Pennsylvania.

This past April, Senator Pat Toomey stood with nearly 90 percent of Pennsylvanians when he co-sponsored bipartisan background checks legislation with fellow NRA A-rated Senator Joe Manchin that would have helped keep firearms out of the wrong hands by extending background checks to cover private gun sales in commercial settings. Senator Casey, too, demonstrated leadership on this issue when he joined a majority of senators in voting in favor of the bill. It failed, however, after it was blocked by a minority of senators. Corresponding legislation in the U.S. House, sponsored by Congressmen Peter King (R-NY) and Mike Thompson (D-CA), currently has more than 180 co-sponsors, including Congressmen Bob Brady (D-PA) and Pat Meehan (R-PA). But Southeast Pennsylvania Congressmen Jim Gerlach and Charles Dent have not yet signed onto the bill.

Every day, 33 Americans are murdered with guns in this country. “No More Names: National Drive to Reduce Gun Violence” is part of Mayors Against Illegal Guns’ ongoing, national effort to continue raising awareness to the issue of gun violence in America – and most importantly, to urge elected officials to prioritize the safety of the people they represent.