Gun Reform NOW; real reproductive choice; and prioritizing gender-based violence worldwide: Your civic action to-do list for 12-23-19
3. In 2019 more than 37,950 people died from gun violence in the United States – nearly 2,000 more than the average number of gun deaths per year. These numbers are devastating and unacceptable!
In a nutshell: While no single bill will save all of the lives that were cut short by firearms this year, passing comprehensive gun violence legislation at the state and federal level will make a difference.
Take Action: Use this easy online tool to email your members of congress and urge them to support universal background checks, an assault weapons ban, and closing the “boyfriend loophole.”
2. Everyone deserves equal access to comprehensive reproductive health care no matter where they live, but in numerous states there is a strategy to eliminate abortion access through ever-more burdensome regulations.
In a nutshell: The Women’s Health Protection Act (WHPA) would lift unnecessary burdens on reproductive health care, and allow people to make vital decisions about their own health, lives, and futures, free of political interference.
Take Action: We only need a few more Representatives to co-sponsor the legislation before it passes the House of Representatives. See if your Congressperson has already co-sponsored, and if they haven’t call their office!
1. Statistics of violence against women around the world are staggering: 39,000 girls under the age of 18 are forced into arranged marriages every day; 1 in 3 women will face abuse in their lifetime, and nearly 11.5 million women and girls are victims of human trafficking.
In a nutshell: Last week the bipartisan International Violence Against Women Act (IVAWA) was introduced in the Senate. IVAWA would help prevent and respond to gender-based violence globally and make ending violence against women and girls a top diplomatic priority for the U.S.
Take Action: Contact your Senators and urge them to join Senators Shaheen (D-NH), Collins (R-ME), and Isakson (R-GA) in co-sponsoring this important legislation!