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Missoula proclaims National Gun Violence Awareness Day; Moms Demand Action and student group urge safe storage and community rally
Summary
Missoula city leaders proclaimed June 7, 2025, National Gun Violence Awareness Day during the June 2 City Council meeting and invited residents to wear orange and attend a community rally.
Missoula city leaders joined a joint county-city proclamation on June 2 declaring June 7, 2025, National Gun Violence Awareness Day and invited residents to observe the day by wearing orange and supporting safe-storage practices.
Roxanne Weichel, introduced as a volunteer with Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense, thanked the council for the proclamation and described the group's national and local membership. "We wear orange to demand a future free from gun violence. Orange symbolizes the value of each person's life," Weichel said, and she urged secure storage of firearms to reduce unintentional shootings and suicides.
Cora Barnes, a student who leads a Students Demand Action chapter in Missoula, told the council: "Every day, 25 people are killed from guns in the U.S." She argued that differences between the United States and other countries with much lower gun-violence rates include law and policy choices, and she urged secure storage and community advocacy. Barnes announced an orange-wear rally on Saturday and offered to distribute gun locks at the event.
The proclamation text read during the meeting included local and national statistics cited by staff: that firearms are a leading cause of death for children and teens and that Montana has a high share of firearm suicides. The proclamation honored victims and encouraged residents to "pledge to wear orange on Saturday, 06/07/2025 to raise awareness, promote responsible gun ownership, and safe storage."
Councilor Jordan thanked the presenters and said his family had moved to Australia in part because of safety concerns related to gun violence; he called for more sensible gun laws while acknowledging Montana's strong hunting culture.
The proclamation was read and entered into the record during the special presentations portion of the meeting and organizers invited residents to a community awareness event on Saturday at 10 a.m. at the bridge above Clark Fork Market.
