Donna Dees and ‘Five Awake’: Never give up on changing domestic violence, gun laws
The documentary, Five Awake, chronicles the journey of five Louisiana women who sought to change the state for the better by pushing through a historic legislative package to protect the victims of domestic violence and save lives… An article in Shootonline.com sets the stage: “Susan Willis, managing partner of post company Cutting Room Films, assembled […]
Firearms fuel domestic violence-driven killing of women
Firearms are used in more than half of intimate partner homicides and two-thirds of pregnancy-related homicides in the United States. Reducing access to firearms can prevent suffering and deaths of women and children. The United Nations defines femicide as “an intentional killing with a gender-related motivation, [that] may be driven by stereotyped gender roles, discrimination towards women and […]
Harris’s continuing gun conversation helps define and model responsible US gun ownership
by Sandy & Lonnie Phillips As parents of a daughter fatally shot in the 2012 Aurora, CO theater mass shooting, we urge Vice President Harris to continue a frank discussion about gun ownership to help quell the current scourge of US gun violence. Vice President Harris’s conversation about gun ownership, which began during her interview […]
What to say to survivors of suicide loss
Being heartfelt is best, but we all sometimes struggle for words. Finding the right words when speaking to a survivor of gun violence can be difficult; that difficulty can be compounded when someone’s loved one dies of suicide by firearm. Here are some suggestions: Stay simple. A simple statement like “I’m sorry” or “I’m so […]
Named one of CNN’s Champions for Change a year ago, Sandy and Lonnie Phillips continue championing change in 2024…and beyond
‘We found our joy again and we want other survivors to find their joy again, too.’ -Sandy Phillips during Anderson Cooper/CNN interview Last September, CNN’s Anderson Cooper profiled his chosen Champion for Change, Sandy and Lonnie Phillips of Survivors Empowered. In the interview, Sandy said that their legacy, in honor of their daughter, Jessi—slain in […]
This is ALL about our kids.
Using common sense, it’s easy to see that sensible gun control legislation, regulation, and accountability are in keeping with what’s best for this nation and our children. Responsible gun ownership means keeping guns out of the hands of those who may harm themselves or others—including children who commit suicide with an improperly-secured gun. Key statistics […]
Gun industry immunity law repeal draws closer with 12 new Congressional HR 4184 cosponsors
Sandy and Lonnie Phillips, Newtown Action Alliance, and Junior Newtown Alliance secure additional support, bringing total to 129 cosponsors Marking 12 years since their daughter’s brutal shooting death along with 11 others in an Aurora, CO theater, Sandy and Lonnie Phillips recently collaborated with Newtown Action Alliance and Junior Newtown Alliance in Washington, DC to […]
Remembering Jessi Redfield Ghawi
Jessi’s spirit and sacrifice shine more intensely than ever as we mark twelve years since she and eleven others were senselessly slaughtered in the 2012 Aurora, CO theater shootings. Tragically for Survivors Empowered founders Sandy and Lonnie Phillips, the shooting death of their daughter Jessi Redfield Ghawi on July 20, 2012, became the catalyst for […]
Meet the new boss; as deadly as the old boss.
The Washington Post recently reported that the United States Supreme Court conservative majority led by Justice Clarence Thomas has given shooters the right to use a device called a bump stock that allows firearms to function as machine guns. In the June 14, 2024 Supreme Court decision in Garland v Cargill, the conservative majority ruled […]
Survivors Of Gun Violence Demand Justice and an End to Firearm Industry Immunity
“The gun industry stole our daughter’s life and the gun industry immunity law bankrupted us. Senator Graham played a massive role in the blood-letting. The killer used an AR-15. He shot our daughter six times. There was not enough of her left to put in a coffin. She was slaughtered along with 11 others in […]