This article originally appeared in the January-February 2004 issue of the Children's Advocate, published by Action Alliance for Children.

Grassroots Snapshot

Statewide coalition wins push for safer handgun design

By Meg Hamill

Jane Roth transformed her grief into activism after the 1993 death of her son Mark, killed while playing with guns with a neighbor. Now she is president of the California State Council of the Million Mom March, which works to prevent gun violence.

Last year the California Million Mom March joined with other organizations to successfully lobby for SB 489, requiring semi-automatic handguns to indicate if they are loaded. Coalition members credit their success to a campaign that worked on many levels.

Personal stories. "There are so many of us who are victims," says Roth. "[At first] we don't know what to do or how to do it. I am so fortunate that I have had a good mentor and that I have the ability to get out there and advocate."

"I had no particular interest in guns or gun policy until my son was killed," says Griffin Dix, secretary of the Mil-lion Mom March's Alameda Chapter. His son was accidentally shot by a friend who didn't know his father's gun was loaded. After Dix began to share his story, he "met so many other people who were also speaking out. I saw them as heroes."

Coalition strategy. The Million Mom March joined with the Brady Campaign, the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence, and Women Against Gun Violence in conference calls last January to plan the year's legislative strategy. "We talked about what bills we wanted to support. We each have different skills, and bring different things to the table," says Luis Tolley, director of state legislation for the Brady Cam-paign.

Legislative expertise. The Brady Campaign and the Coali-tion to Stop Gun Violence, both national organizations, helped draft SB 498 and shepherd it through the legislature. "Both of those groups were pivotal. They went to Assembly members on the fence and said, 'We represent a certain percentage of the voting public and this is how we feel about this issue,'" says Alison Merilees, a consultant for Sena-tor Jack Scott (D, Pasadena). Sen. Scott, who also lost a child to gun violence, was the primary author of the bill.

Email activism. Responding to email action alerts from coalition members, several thousand Californians backed up the lobbying with emails supporting SB 489.

Gathering signatures. Meanwhile, the Million Mom March's Los Angeles chapter gathered signatures in support of SB 489 at local health fairs and school events.

Sacramento lobby day. The high point of the campaign was a Sacramento Lobby Day, May 7, when dozens of grassroots activists presented petitions and met with legislators. Many brought disposable cameras-not to take pictures, but to make a point. Char-lie Bleck, who joined the Million Mom March's Orange County chapter after losing his son to gun violence, says they asked legislators: "If this $5 camera can tell us whether it's loaded, then why can't a handgun tell us the same thing?"

SB 489 passed in September 2003 and will take effect in 2006. "Bringing all those tools to bear, we got a really good bill," says Eric Gorovitz, western policy director for the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence.

For more information

• Brady Campaign, 202-289-7319, www.bradycampaign.org

• Coalition to Stop Gun Violence, 202-408-0061, www.gunfree.org

• Million Mom March, to find a chapter near you, 202-289-7319, www.millionmommarch.org

• Women Against Gun Violence, 310-204-2348, www.wagv.org

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