Dancing on their graves?

I don't hear enough from Richard Martinez.  His son Christopher was among the six college students murdered in Isla Vista, California.  He has gone on the offensive rather than be silent in his grief.

Unlike a lot of other people, Mr. Martinez has been public in his outrage about the inaction to address the out of control situation that is the US gun problem.  His first public statement was a blistering and emotional indictment of “craven” politicians who refuse to act on even moderate gun reform.

Take a look in the mirror and ask yourself--"Do you really believe that you are safe from being touched by gun violence?"

Be honest with yourself.  Do you really think that your kid is safe when you have a gun in the house?

Anyway, Richard Martinez says “For me to live with this and honor his memory, I will continue to go anywhere and talk to anybody for as long as they want and are willing to listen to me about this problem. I’m not going to shut up.”

He isn't going away and he is NOT backing down.

Portraits of Gun Violence: Michael Hampson

If you've noticed one thing about this series: it should be that the death of the child has led to the mother becoming involved in the movement to end gun violence.

That is very true about Mari Bailey whose son, Michael Hampson was shot and killed in 2004.  Her son may have passed, but Mari keeps his memory alive.

Michael was shot and killed by someone who he thought was a friend.

Michael was attending culinary school that night — he dreamed of becoming a chef — and he was supposed to be in school until 10:30 p.m., but the teacher dismissed the class 30 minutes early. Michael drove to a friend’s house.

There were seven people at the house, including his friend’s mom. The mom wanted to buy a new TV, so Michael volunteered to take her to Wal-Mart since he was the only one with a car. While she was getting ready, her son — he was also Michael’s friend — became angry.

No one knows what set him off, but he pulled a gun and pointed it at everyone in the house. Eventually, the shooter aimed the gun at Michael’s chest. He was about a foot away when he pulled the trigger. The bullet went through my son’s chest and became lodged in a kitchen cabinet. Michael collapsed, but he wasn’t dead.

Unfortunately, everyone in the house panicked and instead of calling 911, they made up a story and decided to hide the gun. It was then that they finally called 911. I have no idea how long it took them to come up with the story and hide the gun, but as they sat there trying to cover up what had happened, Michael lay there, on a dirty kitchen floor, bleeding from his chest and mouth.

When they finally called 911, the caller said, very nonchalantly, “My homeboy’s been shot. Someone broke into the house and shot him.” Because it was a crime scene, the paramedics were not allowed in to help Michael. The police had to secure the scene.

Michael was taken to the trauma ICU at St. Joseph’s hospital where he was placed on life support. 
On the fourth day, the doctors started doing brain activity tests on Michael. He was pronounced brain dead at 3:13 p.m. on August 21, 2004. I worked with the Donor Network of Arizona to donate all of Michael’s organs, tissue, bones, corneas, skin — everything viable was donated to help save or improve the lives of more than 75 people.

Mari had to try and make sense of Michael’s death. She researched how to prevent gun violence and came across the National Million Mom March website. Mari wanted to stop another family from experiencing what She had experienced. Mari started the Greater Phoenix Million Mom March chapter a year after Michael was killed.

Anyone who knows Mari knows that she misses her son very much:

I miss hearing Michael’s voice. I miss his laughter. I miss his hugs and I miss his blue eyes. I miss him more than anything.

It definitely does not get easier. Though it has become easier to keep my feelings bottled up so I can, somehow, cope, day-in and day-out, the pain never goes away. Some days, the pain is so unbearable, you feel like it will kill you. If you are lucky — with a lot of time and grief work — the pain will become more gentle and that’s the best you can ever hope for.

Portraits of Gun Violence: Jessica Ghawi

You didn't need to meet Jessica Ghawi to feel her infectious energy.  It seems to be an energy which won't die since the first item that came up was her post on the Toronto shooting that she survived.  She managed to survive one, yet ended up the victim of another.

Part of the reason I'm writing this is that I know her mother who is coping with this incident.  I see Jessi's face and I think of the interview she did where she was wearing high heels on the ice at a hockey rink.  She kept falling down, but that didn't stop her from trying.

“She would walk into a room, and the place would light up. She was a jolt of lightning,” her mother,  said through tears Saturday. “She just had a spirit that was larger than life.”

You didn't even need to meet her to feel her energy as this remembrance of her attests:
caitykauffman.wordpress.com/2012/07/20/a-letter-to-jessica-ghawi-victim-of-the-colorado-shooting/

Maybe that's why I am writing this post.


I understand that she started a charity before she died to provide Sports Equipment for underprivileged children that recently held a drive to collect sporting gear.

Jessica may have died that night, but she is not a "victim" as her energy will carry on a live until something is done about this plague.

And for you hoaxers, I can assure you that Jessica Ghawi is quite dead and not physically present in this reality.  Her spirit may be strong, but her physical presence is no longer with us.

Portraits of Gun Violence: Patrick McKinley

I'll let his mother tell you about her son.  This was filmed at an art exhibition of Patrick's art which contained works that his mother hadn't seen:


I think Patrick would want us to remember him, how he died, and do something about this situation from what Jeanette says.  Unlike Colin Goddard and Stephen Barton, Patrick didn't survive to fight on, which means we need to continue the work to end this problem.

We aren't doing anything other than swim in the blood of the victims since there is so much of it soaked in the land.

Ever-growing Tribute to Gun Violence Victims in America

Pretty short to do justice to this topic.

It's not "dancing on the graves/in the blood of" or any of your other bullshit excuses for not paying attention to the victims of gun violence since the families live with it.  This was shared to me by one of the victims pictured in it.  The families of the people who are pictured here are active in the movement to end gun violence.


I don't know if Denise Decker or Nancy Faber are in this, but there are many people who have been victims who are remembered by only a few.

The time is long past for action as the number on this list grows longer on a daily basis.

Here's the latest numbers:

What can raise compassion in heartless people?

Some people believe that you can garner compassion if you put a face to the numbers.