Mr. Rogers, Violence, and Activism

I like to imagine the spirit of Fred Rogers is sending his sweet energy to Boston right now.  His words, shared in a Facebook post this morning, shifted my perspective in a good way  They  inspired me to focus on the goodness in humankind, not the dark heart of the bomber.  Or bombers.   I'm thinking not only of the brave and efficient first responders, but also the ordinary people like you and me who were giving comfort and assistance to strangers. 

 

TV coverage I saw today was about eight-year-old Martin Richard, killed by the blast as he waited near the finish line to congratulate his father.    The boy's mother and sister were injured and are being treated now in one of the hospitals.   Excruciatingly sad, all the way around.  

 

 I can't help thinking about the many children who die daily— tragically as young Martin did— as victims of gun violence.  Not only those at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, but on the streets of Chicago and all over America.  Beyond offering prayers and sending good thoughts, you and I can do little to nothing about what happened in Boston yesterday.  But we can raise our voices to ensure the background check bill for better gun safety passes the Senate and then the House.  I hope you'll call your own senators and house members today, tomorrow and every day until the vote is taken.   And, just as important—maybe more important—is that we call the fence sitters who can mean the bill's passage or defeat in the Senate.   Senators currently on the fence, according to David Hawkings at Roll Call (http://blogs.rollcall.com/hawkings/9-senators-who-hold-fate-of-background-check-deal/), are these Democratic senators from red states:  Max Baucus of Montana, Kay Hagan of North Carolina and Mary L. Landrieu of Louisiana.  Ask them to be courageous enough to vote YES.   And these Republican senators are being lobbied by those on both sides of the issue.  Let's call them all and ask for a YES vote:  Johnny Isakson and Saxby Chambliss of Georgia, Jeff Flake of Arizona, Dean Heller of Nevada, Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire and John Hoeven of North Dakota.

 

If you know anyone from these critical states, anyone who favors improved gun safety, ask them to  contact their senator.  A call matters even more when it come from voters in their own state; however, the number of calls matters, as well.   This is action we need to take right away.  After these votes are taken and the bill (hopefully) passes, we won't give up on getting more and stronger laws— to limit the number of bullets allowed in magazines/clips and eliminating assault weapons.  We won't give up.  But for now, let's do our best to get the Manchin-Toomey compromise (on background checks) passed by the Senate and then get to work on the House members.  The numbers for all senators can be found at http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm.

 

 For me, activism of some kind plays a key role in the healing process.  Let's channel our shock and grief about the Boston tragedy into making a positive difference in our democracy.  Into making America a safer place to live.   I'm smiling as I imagine those nine senators' phones ringing off the hook.