by ZontaDoris

Have you heard? 

National Gun Violence Awareness Day is Friday, June 2.

Kathleen McGrory, staff writer for the Tampa Bay Times, recently interviewed Michelle Gajda, Florida chapter leader of the advocacy group Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America. Gajda explained that the national Wear Orange campaign is intended to end gun violence and save lives.

McGrory reported that “Florida will host more Wear Orange events than any other state — a deliberate attempt to ‘highlight the magnitude of the gun violence epidemic.'” (Gajda)

A horrifyingly high percentage of deaths from Intimate Partner Violence (IPV)/Domestic Violence (DV) happens when assailants shoot their partners. From the 2016 Fatality Review report by the Pinellas County Domestic Violence Task Force (which we will feature later in June in this blog), we learned that

FIREARMS were the LEADING CAUSE OF DEATH in Pinellas County IPV/DV cases 44% of the time, which is far more than knives (used 30% of the time) or strangulation (12% of the time).

In IPV/DV cases in 2016 involving a homicide/suicide in the home analyzed by the Task Force, an OVERRIDING MAJORITY–89% of the Pinellas County homicide/suicide cases reviewed by the Task Force involved a firearm.

AS INSTRUMENTS OF DEATH, GUNS ARE WAY TOO EFFICIENT AND EFFECTIVE. (caps and bold are mine)

Additionally, the report notes that while:

“Federal Statute prevents anyone convicted of a domestic violence misdemeanor from possessing or purchasing a firearm, in Pinellas County, many people charged with domestic battery are placed in a diversion program which does not qualify as a conviction, thus allowing them to possess firearms.”

WHAT IS THAT ABOUT? The net impact is that while we try to hold batterers accountable and help them learn better ways to manage their anger and behavior in domestic relationships, because they are not charged with a crime, THEY CAN KEEP THEIR GUNS CLOSE BY, thereby increasing the likelihood that if they lapse and abuse their partner again, death could result for the person they abuse and anyone else who happens to be present. 

TO SUMMARIZE, IPV/DV GUN VIOLENCE IS UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL IN PINELLAS COUNTY.

Wear Orange events in Tampa Bay will be held on June 2 and June 3  as follows:

• June 2, Candlelight vigil, Curtis Hixon Park, 600 N. Ashley Drive, Tampa, 8:00 PM
• June 3, St. Pete Wear Orange Party for Peace, Gladden Park, 3901 30th Avenue N, St. Petersburg, 10:00 AM
• June 3, Orange KISS: Keep It Safe & Smart, The Portico, 1001 N. Florida Avenue, Tampa, 2:00 PM

The Zonta Club of Pinellas County supports the Wear Orange goals.

WE WILL BE IN ST. PETERSBURG ON SATURDAY MORNING. PLEASE JOIN US!

We will participate in our customized orange T-shirts to honor IPV/DV victims and show our support for IPV/DV survivors and our bonds with Zonta Club members in Macedonia and Albania. They held their event early in May to stop violence against women.

 

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Views expressed in this blog post are mine and may not reflect the stance of the Zonta Club of Pinellas County or Zonta International. — Doris Reeves-Lipscomb