Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Safety Gun Violence topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Local Moms Demand Action representative urges commissioners to proclaim Gun Violence Awareness Day
Summary
A Moms Demand Action local leader told the Johnston County Board that commissioners declined a request to proclaim June 6, 2025, Gun Violence Awareness Day, and urged the board to reconsider and raise awareness about gun-related deaths and suicide.
Shannon Halber, Johnston County local group lead for Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, told the Board of Commissioners on May 5 that she was "disappointed and sad" commissioners did not approve a request for a proclamation declaring June 6, 2025, Gun Violence Awareness Day.
Halber described Wear Orange weekend and recounted the movement's origin in memory of Hadiya Pendleton, whom she said was killed in Chicago in 2015. Halber urged commissioners to recognize the day to honor people in Johnston County impacted by gun violence and to spur conversations about prevention. "We cannot have a conversation about mental health, child safety, or public safety without a discussion of gun violence," she said.
During her remarks Halber cited national and state estimates of the financial cost of gun violence and said, "gun violence is the number one cause of death for children in the U.S., North Carolina, and Johnston County," and that suicide accounts for the majority of gun deaths. Her remarks were made during the meeting’s public comment period; commissioners did not take action on a proclamation during the May 5 session.
