Families of Victims of Virginia Tech and Newtown Massacres to Gather in Blacksburg to Voice Support for Common-Sense Background Checks That Help Save Lives

BLACKSBURG, Va., June 19, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- On Friday, June 21st, families of victims of the Virginia Tech and Newtown massacres will gather in Blacksburg, Virginia as part of the "No More Names: National Drive to Reduce Gun Violence" – a 25-state national bus tour over a period of 100 days aimed at urging America's leaders to support common-sense gun policies. Participants will come together Friday to voice their continued support for comprehensive and enforceable background checks, and they will thank U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine for voting in favor of this life-saving measure.

This past April, Senators Warner and Kaine stood with the more than 90 percent of Americans who support background checks and voted in favor of bipartisan legislation sponsored by NRA A-rated Senators Joe Manchin and Pat Toomey that would have helped keep guns out of the hands of criminals by requiring background checks for commercial gun sales.

Every day, 33 Americans are murdered with guns in this country. "No More Names: National Drive to Reduce Gun Violence" is part of Mayors Against Illegal Guns' ongoing, national effort to continue raising awareness to the issue of gun violence in America – and most importantly, to urge elected officials to act on behalf of the people they represent.

What: Families of victims of the Virginia Tech and Newtown massacres gather to support background checks and thank Senators Warner and Kaine for voting in favor of this life-saving measure

Who: 
- Neil Heslin, whose 6-year-old son Jesse was murdered in Newtown
- Peter Read, whose daughter Mary was murdered at Virginia Tech
- Andrew Goddard, whose son Colin is a survivor of the shooting at Virginia Tech
- Uma Loganathan, whose father G.V. was murdered at Virginia Tech
- Jerzy Nowak, whose wife Jocelyne was murdered at Virginia Tech

Where: Marcia Park
200 Clay Street SW (Located at the corner of Draper Road and Clay Street)
Blacksburg, Virginia

When: Friday, June 21st
Press Conference Time: 9:30 a.m.
Reading Time: 9:00 a.m.-9:00 p.m.

*Neil Heslin, Peter Read, Andrew Goddard, and Uma Loganathan will be available to speak with media throughout the day. For interview requests in advance and on-site, please contact Stacey Radnor at 202-870-6668.

About Mayors Against Illegal Guns
Since its creation in April 2006, Mayors Against Illegal Guns has grown from 15 members to more than 950 mayors from across the country. We have more than 1.5 million grassroots supporters, making us the largest gun violence prevention advocacy organization in the country.  The bipartisan coalition, co-chaired by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, has united the nation's mayors around these common goals: protecting communities by holding gun offenders accountable; demanding access to crime gun trace data that is critical to law enforcement efforts to combat gun trafficking; and working with legislators to fix weaknesses and loopholes in the law that make it far too easy for criminals and other dangerous people to get guns.  Learn more at www.mayorsagainstillegalguns.org

MEDIA CONTACTS
Alex Katz: [email protected] or 212-788-7617
Stacey Radnor: [email protected] or 202-870-6668
Lizzie Ulmer: [email protected] or 269-271-2331

SOURCE Mayors Against Illegal Guns

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