KALAMAZOO (WKZO AM/FM) — The Coalition for Common Ground, a group of local gun survivor groups planned their fourth annual Service of Remembrance at Galilee Baptist Church for Sunday long before anyone knew that 17-students would be killed in Florida by a another troubled teen with an assault rifle.
The emotional, mournful and inspirational ceremony featured nearly two dozen people who had lost relatives and friends to gun violence, who brought pictures of the victims.
Pastor Michael Scott Sr. used the opportunity to make a call for action, urging all 300 who appeared at the event to start working to address the issue of gun violence by contacting their representatives in Washington and Lansing. It brought the crowd to their feet with applause.
The one thing that appears to be making the school shooting in Florida and its impact on the gun debate different is that the teens are taking the lead, calling for marches, threatening school walkouts refusing to suppress the discussion over guns and organizing.
Kalamazoo Central Students put up an online petition, pressing Congressman Fred Upton to back gun regulation. They initially hoped to get 5,000 to sign, so far they now have nearly 59,000 and it’s climbing.
Pastor Linda McDonald and Martha O’Millian with Mom’s Demand Action thinks the involvement of teens is a very positive change. They think they may finally push the issue past the tipping point where real change is possible, at least they hope so.
