Let’s see: we have a bunch of gang-bangers, who weren’t legally allowed to own any firearms, one of whom had a history of violence and should have still been in jail for his felonies. You have an art showing going on at 3am in one of the really bad neighborhoods of Trenton, NJ (I compared the location to the Neighborhood Scout map). So, guess who this Mom’s Demand member, who surely doesn’t actually live in the neighborhood, blames?
Thoughts from a survivor – and gun control advocate – of Art All Night shooting
The irony of the night was not lost on Fran Carroll. Having spent four hours asking Art All Night attendees to “imagine a world without gun violence,†Carroll — a volunteer for Moms Demand Action For Gun Sense — no longer can. Carroll was present early Sunday morning when gunmen started shooting at the state’s largest arts festival.
“I have now experienced firsthand the terror of an active shooting situation,” said Carroll, in between bouts of tears. “Of running with a stampede of people, pushing and shoving. Of taking shelter behind a thin wood wall that I knew wouldn’t stop a bullet, wondering where else I could hide, should we crouch behind that stack of tables? Not knowing if it was safe to run outside with most of the crowd because we had no idea where the gunman – gunmen? – was.”
Prior to 2:45 a.m. and her shift which started at 11 p.m., Carroll, who lives in Hamilton, spent several hours at the arts festival with a fellow Moms Demand Action volunteer admiring the art festival’s offerings.
Hamilton Township abuts Trenton, and is actually pretty safe. They also do not seem to like black people, being 67% white.
Having joined in February — just days before the Parkland, Florida shooting — Carroll is new to Moms Demand Action. But, the mom of three teens is not new to the issue of gun violence. She has been a proponent of stricter gun control for many years.
“It has pissed me off quite frankly that we as a country, as a whole, don’t seem to be willing to face this issue head-on, don’t seem to be able to do anything about it,” Carroll said. “Other countries have. It kills me that people say, ‘Oh, there’s nothing we can do,’ or ‘The gun culture is so pervasive and we have the Second Amendment.’ There are things that can be done. Look at Australia — that is the model. They had this horrible mass shooting and they collectively decided that this is not who we want to be and they we are better than this. And here, nobody wants to do anything — and it’s because of the money. Because of the NRA and their lobbying. In my opinion, they are not about the second amendment and gun rights. They are lobbyists for gun manufacturers who are making lots of money selling these weapons and the ammunition. They have bought and sold Congress. It’s maddening to me that not enough people, including our elected officials, won’t stand up and say, ‘No, enough.’ It’s an uphill battle for sure, but we have got to do something. We need an army of people — not with guns —but with voices and their pens and their vote.”
New Jersey is one of the strictest states on limiting the 2nd Amendment Rights of law abiding citizens, and literally just enacted six more laws that mostly effect law abiding citizens. Virtually everything the gun grabbers in groups like Mom’s Demand has been passed. Other than straight up banning and confiscation, what more does Carroll want?
Notice that she doesn’t blame criminals, gangs, letting violent criminals out of jail early, a bad criminal justice system, etc. No, she blames the NRA and the law abiding citizens who are members. She spouts talking points from Mom’s Demand about them being lobbyists for gun manufacturers, which is a lie. And, again, none of the gang members shooters were legally eligible to own/possess firearms.
What laws, exactly, are being pushed by Mom’s Demand that would stop gang members from shooting each other, with other citizens being collateral damage? It’s interesting that gang shootings tend to happen the most in areas run by Democrats.
