You’ll be seeing orange this weekend
The North Idaho Group of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America and Students Demand Action will be hosting a visual community event June 5-7 recognizing National Gun Violence Awareness Day and Wear Orange weekend. Join us as we display the color orange in the community in honoring the victims and survivors of gun violence. We hope you take notice and remember to Wear Orange.
Mayor Steve Widmyer of Coeur d’Alene and Mayor Shelby Rognstad of Sandpoint have both issued proclamations declaring Friday, June 5, 2020, Gun Violence Awareness Day in those respective cities.
When you are out and about in these communities you will notice orange ribbons tied around the trees that line Sherman Avenue in downtown Coeur d’Alene and also at Farmin Park and Triangle Park in Sandpoint. Also in Coeur d’Alene at McEuen Park the lights at the Greg Moore memorial will be changed to orange. Officer Moore was tragically killed by gun violence here in Coeur d’Alene five years ago. We have also done a rock painting project with small inspirational orange rocks distributed throughout the community on trails and walkways.
To explain further — Orange is the color that Hadiya Pendleton’s friends wore in her honor after she was shot and killed at the age of 15. After her death, her friends asked us to stand up, speak out, and Wear Orange to raise awareness about gun violence. Whether it’s worn by hunters in the forests of Idaho or Hadiya’s loved ones in Chicago, orange honors the 100 lives cut short and the hundreds more wounded by gun violence every day — and demands action.
Here in North Idaho, each one of us most likely knows someone who has been impacted by homicide, suicide and even unintentional shootings. Our goal is to raise awareness of gun violence which includes suicide. Suicide is especially prevalent in Idaho. Idaho has the 16th highest rate of gun deaths in the United States with 87% of those gun deaths being suicide and 9% being homicide. This is compared to 61% and 36% respectively, nationwide.
Even without a pandemic, America has a gun suicide problem. Gun suicide makes up two-thirds of all firearm deaths in the U.S., and access to firearms — meaning personal or household gun ownership — increases the risk of suicide by three times. We also know that unemployment and financial hardship can increase the risk of suicide, so we’re encouraging everyone to check in on their loved ones in this trying time. For support, please go to https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org.
Surging gun sales and shelter-in-place orders have left domestic violence victims trapped with abusers who have easy access to guns. That’s a deadly combination. Domestic violence spikes during times of prolonged financial stress — plus, access to guns makes it five times more likely an abuser will kill his female victim.
If you or someone you know is being mistreated or hurt by a partner, please reach out to the National Domestic Violence Hotline. It’s available 24/7, and the phone number is 1-800-799-7233. And if you’re unable to speak safely, you can log onto thehotline.org, or text “LOVE IS” — one word — to 22522.
Gun violence doesn’t stop because of coronavirus, and neither does the movement to stop it.
We continue to educate, organize, support, and rally for safer communities. To learn more go to wearorange.org or text ORANGE to 64433.
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Alice Arambarri is North Idaho Group Leader of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America.