Enrolled  August 17, 2021
Passed  IN  Senate  August 16, 2021
Passed  IN  Assembly  June 03, 2021

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2021–2022 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Concurrent Resolution
No. 87

Introduced by Assembly Member Gipson
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Aguiar-Curry, Arambula, Bauer-Kahan, Bennett, Berman, Bloom, Boerner Horvath, Bryan, Burke, Calderon, Carrillo, Cervantes, Chau, Chiu, Choi, Cooley, Cooper, Cunningham, Megan Dahle, Daly, Davies, Flora, Fong, Frazier, Friedman, Gabriel, Gallagher, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Lorena Gonzalez, Gray, Grayson, Holden, Irwin, Jones-Sawyer, Kalra, Lackey, Lee, Levine, Low, Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Mullin, Muratsuchi, Nazarian, Nguyen, O’Donnell, Petrie-Norris, Quirk, Quirk-Silva, Ramos, Rendon, Reyes, Luz Rivas, Robert Rivas, Rodriguez, Blanca Rubio, Salas, Santiago, Seyarto, Smith, Stone, Ting, Valladares, Villapudua, Voepel, Ward, Akilah Weber, Wicks, and Wood)

May 20, 2021

Relative to National Gun Violence Awareness Day.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


ACR 87, Gipson. National Gun Violence Awareness Day
This measure would proclaim June 4, 2021, as National Gun Violence Awareness Day.
Fiscal Committee: NO  
WHEREAS, Every day, more than 100 Americans are killed by gun violence alongside more than 230 who are shot and wounded, and on average there are more than 14,000 gun homicides every year; and
WHEREAS, Americans are 25 times more likely to die by gun homicide than people in other high-income countries; and
WHEREAS, California has the 45th highest rate of gun deaths in the United States, with over 3,000 gun deaths every year, a rate of 7.6 deaths per 100,000 people; and
WHEREAS, In the City of Los Angeles, there were 350 homicides in 2020, nearly 100 more than in 2019, many of which involved gun violence; and
WHEREAS, Protecting public safety in the communities they serve is among a legislator’s greatest responsibilities; and
WHEREAS, Black and Latinx communities have borne the heaviest burden of gun violence in cities for years; and
WHEREAS, Support for the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens goes hand-in-hand with keeping guns away from people that shouldn’t have them; and
WHEREAS, Acknowledging recent strides made by the Biden Administration, there remains a need for greater focus on gun violence prevention within our communities; and
WHEREAS, Gun violence prevention is more important than ever as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to exacerbate gun violence after more than a year of increased gun sales, increased calls to suicide and domestic violence hotlines, and an increase in city gun violence; and
WHEREAS, In January 2013, 15 year old Hadiya Pendleton was tragically shot and killed, and on June 4, 2021, to recognize the 24th birthday of Hadiya Pendleton, people across the United States will recognize National Gun Violence Awareness Day and wear orange in tribute to Hadiya, other victims of gun violence, and their loved ones; and
WHEREAS, The idea was inspired by a group of Hadiya’s friends, who asked their classmates to commemorate her life by wearing orange because hunters wear orange to announce themselves to other hunters when out in the woods and orange is a color that symbolizes the value of human life; and
WHEREAS, Anyone can join this campaign by pledging to wear orange on June 4, the first Friday in June in 2021, to help raise awareness about gun violence; and
WHEREAS, By wearing orange on June 4, 2021, Americans will raise awareness about gun violence and honor the lives of gun violence victims and survivors; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, the Senate thereof concurring, That the Legislature declares the first Friday in June, June 4, 2021, to be National Gun Violence Awareness Day; and be it further
Resolved, That the Legislature renews their commitment to reduce gun violence and pledges to do all that can be done to keep firearms out of the wrong hands and to encourage responsible gun ownership to help keep our children safe; and be it further
Resolved, That the Legislature encourages all citizens to support their communities’ efforts to prevent the tragic effects of gun violence and to honor and value human lives; and be it further
Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.