Maine churches join Gun Safety Awareness Sabbath following Lewiston mass shooting

by Aysia Reed, WGME Sun, February 18th 2024 at 4:59 PM

BRUNSWICK (WGME)- The Maine Gun Safety Coalition encouraged Maine places of worship to participate in a Gun Safety Awareness Sabbath in the wake of the Lewiston mass shooting.

Reverend Kharma Amos says the church already has a long history of discussing issues around gun safety for more than a decade.

“We will be including things related to gun safety awareness and honoring the loss of lives from gun violence,” said Amos.

According to the Maine Gun Safety Coalition, an average of 150 Mainers are killed each year to gun violence.

Betsy Williams is a congressional liaison for an advocacy group to educate folks on gun safety awareness.

This weekend the Maine Gun Safety Coalition encouraged Maine places of worship to participate in a ‘Gun Safety Awareness Sabbath’ in the wake of the Lewiston mass shooting (WGME).

“I think the time is now. And I think everybody’s awareness is raised,” said Williams.

Williams says they’re not advocating for any type of ban on weapons but for stricter background checks and potentially adopting a red flag law.

“That loss of life is troubling to us. We believe gun violence can be prevented,” said Amos.

“It’s sort of a ramped up effort because it feels like the time might be now to get bipartisan legislative support to pass these bills,” said Williams.

Williams hopes their message of what they call more ‘common sense gun laws’ reaches lawmakers.