Follen people who took part in the Mother’s Day Walk for Peace in 2016

Gun Violence Prevention Group

There has been an alarming increase in gun violence recently. Murders, suicides, and accidents took nearly 40,000 American lives in 2017, the latest year for which statistics are available. Sixty percent of these deaths were suicides and more than 2,700 were children and teens.

Follen’s Gun Violence Prevention Group is working to help battle this appalling problem at the local, state, and national level. We do this by working with the Massachusetts Coalition to Prevent Gun Violence, of which the Follen Church is a member, to keep awareness and understanding high, and to rally public support for specific legislation. Last year, we helped secure the passage of the Extreme Risk Protection Order by the Massachusetts legislature.

We support alternatives to violence though organizations such as Youth Jobs Coalition and the Louis D. Brown Peace (LDB) Institute.

Every year we send a substantial contingent of Follen people to the Mother’s Day Walk for Peace (see photo above) and many in our community have made this a part of their family’s Mother’s day tradition. This year’s walk will be on Sunday May 12, 2019. Contributions from faith communities are an important source of income for LDB Institute and Follen has always been at or near the top of contributions by faith communities. 

We continue to explore solutions to injustices that minority groups face with regard to violence. To join the conversation, or for more information, contact Anne Grady at gvp@follen.org.