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The Call to Global Action March 2023
Welcome to the first Global Action on Gun Violence (GAGV) newsletter. You are hearing from us because you signed up for updates on our website or you know one of GAGV’s team members!
Our small, but mighty team is me, Jon Lowy, founder and president; Becky Burke, COO; Mary Ester, chief development officer; and Nancy Hwa, communications manager.
GAGV is leading a bold new approach to end gun violence in the United States and the world.
Having battled the gun industry for over 25 years, I understand that all of us sometimes feel that ending gun violence in the U.S. is a hopeless cause. One mass shooting after another. Increasing gun deaths. Congressional inaction. Extremist judges.
But hopelessness is the most dangerous weapon the gun industry and gun lobby have. We can’t give up.
Our theory of change is to deploy an “outside game.” We partner with the international community to reform the gun industry and stop gun trafficking, using impact litigation, human rights actions, and bold advocacy and messaging.
GAGV’s approach brings hope that we can finally end the U.S. gun crisis and prevent its spread to other countries.
The Outside Game to Change the Inside Game
By bringing international lawsuits, we can avoid the special protection the gun industry enjoys in U.S. courts (thanks to Congress). In addition, human rights law isn’t skewed by extremist judges who elevate “gun rights.” And international action is not constrained by gun-friendly U.S. politics.
In our first few months, GAGV has hit the ground running. We have testified before the Organization of American States and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights; submitted reports to the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights; spoken at an international conference on gun trafficking; participated in an international delegation on gun violence in Mexico; and more.
TIME wrote that GAGV has an “innovative way to force firearm companies to take more responsibility for gun violence.”Politico wrote, “The launch of the new group underscores how the theater for action has expanded globally.” (And the NRA attacked us.)
GAGV’s strategy is a light at the end of the tunnel. Our vision of success is a world in which guns are made and sold responsibly, the crime gun pipeline is stopped, and the right to live is respected and protected more than a right to guns.
We are awaiting our non-profit status from the IRS, but you can still support us with a tax-deductible gift! Please contact Mary at mester@actiononguns.org to contribute.
GAGV’s origins began when I helped Mexico file thefirst-ever lawsuit by a foreign government against American gun companies. You see, other countries are willing to take on the gun industry! And we believe that the industry’s special protections don’t apply for those lawsuits.
We are also helping with two other international lawsuits: alandmark class action in Canada against gun manufacturer Smith & Wesson brought by victims of a mass shooting in Toronto, and a second suit by Mexico—this one against severalgun dealers in Arizona.
These lawsuits seek fundamental changes in how guns are made and sold to radically reduce crime guns. That means here in the U.S. too. Among other changes,gun manufacturers would be forced to sell guns responsibly to stop the trafficking of crime guns and include safety features. That would mean fewer accidental deaths and fewer guns flooding the criminal market.
Danger in Mexico: U.S. Guns Trigger Vast Problems
A couple of weeks ago, I traveled to Mexico as part of an international delegation on gun violence. We visited the state of Guerrero, despite the fact that the U.S. State Department has warned against traveling there due to crime and kidnapping. The recent kidnapping and killing of Americans in Mexico puts my recent trip in sharp focus. The delegation and I didn’t make the decision to go lightly.
Let me explain: both of our countries face intense challenges due to gun violence. I lay the blame at the feet of the gun industry. It needs the criminal market in the United States and of our neighbors to make their profits. GAGV is aiming to disrupt that flow of crime guns to stop the U.S. gun epidemic and its spread into a global pandemic. Hearing directly from victims of the U.S. gun industry’s recklessness made the risk worth it to me.
I met journalists and families in Guerrera who told horrific stories perpetrated by the narco-cartels. The cartels use torture, threats, and killings to keep local law enforcement at bay, silence journalists, and perpetuate thousands of “forced disappearances,” where people are kidnapped, tortured, killed, and buried, but never found. The stories of these victims was heart-wrenching, but their resilience and courage was inspiring.
U.S. guns, of course, are at the heart of much of this “hell,” as one man I met said. In fact, 70-80% of crime guns in Mexico are guns that are trafficked from the U.S.
The narcos send fentanyl north that kills our kids. Violence forces migrants north.
It’s U.S. gun manufacturers and dealers that choose to enable the trafficking that arms the cartels—AR-15s, AK-47s, and .50-caliber sniper rifles that can shoot down helicopters. And, of course, these same deadly practices kill over 40,000 in the U.S. every year.
One family who touched me deeply was the Herreras, shown above. Four of their sons have been disappeared. Their courage in the face of unimaginable threats gives me hope. GAGV’s innovative strategy to open a new attack on the gun industry with international partners is giving the Herreras—and all of us—hope.
In the fall, we announced GAGV with the launch of our website and media outreach.
We are fortunate to have a leading designer and an executive from one of the world’s premier marketing companies lend their talents to give our website its distinctive, contemporary look.
Please read the Welcome Letter to learn more about why GAGV was started and why I believe our approach will make a real difference to prevent firearms deaths and injuries.
