Voices for a Safer Tennessee

Voices for a Safer Tennessee is a nonpartisan statewide coalition dedicated to prioritizing gun safety and advocating for common sense gun laws to make communities across Tennessee safer for all of us.

Media Advisory

The Atlantic: The Politics of Gun Safety Are Changing. I Should Know.

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By William H. Frist | April 3, 2024

“I encourage people who, like me, are impatient for change to look around, because something is happening.

A mass shooting. Children dead. Families and communities grieving. Then the cycle repeats. I get asked over and over again: Why do mass shootings not motivate lawmakers to act? Why does nothing happen?

I understand the frustration. I’m a gun owner and a strong Second Amendment supporter. I’m also a physician and a grandfather. We have reached a public-health crisis where firearms are now the No. 1 killer of kids in America. Shockingly, the rate of firearm fatalities among children under 18 increased 87 percent from 2011 to 2021. Had the problem been this large during my time in the U.S. Senate, where I represented Tennessee for 12 years and served as majority leader for four, it would have unquestionably influenced my vote on key firearm-related legislation. I want to see proven firearm-safety policies enacted that protect our children—which we can achieve while preserving our Second Amendment rights.”

Continue reading at The Atlantic.

William H. Frist is a heart- and lung-transplant surgeon and a former United States Senate majority leader who represented Tennessee from 1995 to 2007. He serves as the chair of the global board of the Nature Conservancy.

BBC: Thousands form human chain in Tennessee to mark school shooting anniversary

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“Advocates for gun safety gathered to form a human chain in Tennessee to mark one year after an elementary school shooting that left six dead, including three children.

Thousands linked arms on Wednesday from the Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt University to the Tennessee State Capitol, calling for gun law reform on the anniversary of the Covenant School shooting in Nashville.”

Watch video at BBC News.

Linking Arms for Change organized by Voices for a Safer Tennessee in Nashville at Centennial Park on the 1st Anniversary of the Covenant School Shooting. Nashville, TN. March 27, 2024,

Thousands Gather for Second “Linking Arms for Change” Event on  First Anniversary of The Covenant School Tragedy

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MARCH 28,2024

Tennesseans link arms in Nashville and participate in satellite community gatherings across the state  

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Yesterday approximately 12,000 Tennesseans linked arms from Centennial Park and Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt down Broadway to the State Capitol to honor the six victims of The Covenant School shooting and the nearly 1,300 adults and children who lost their lives to preventable firearm tragedies over the last year in our state.  

“Linking Arms for Change” was hosted by Voices for a Safer Tennessee, a nonpartisan statewide coalition formed in the days following The Covenant School tragedy. The group is dedicated to creating healthier, safer communities by reducing preventable firearm tragedies and advocating for pragmatic firearm safety laws.  

“During ‘Linking Arms for Change’, Tennesseans once again showed that they stand with the Covenant community and the loved ones of all victims of preventable firearm tragedies.” said Voices for a Safer Tennessee executive director Claudia Huskey. “On an otherwise somber day of remembrance and grief, this clear demonstration of unity provides hope and healing to our community.”

While families, neighbors, and friends linked arms, a program of inspirational messages and beautiful music was held at Centennial Park. Uplifting songs were shared by Ketch Secor, co-founder and lead singer for the band Old Crow Medicine Show with Americana artist Molly Tuttle, 17-year-old guitar virtuoso Grace Bowers with Judge Sheila Calloway, and Contemporary Christian Music artist Blessing Offor. Faith leaders who offered reflections and prayers included Father Mark Beckman from Saint Henry Catholic Church, Dr. Donovan McAbee from Belmont University, Reverend Cody Balfour from Koinonia Church, Rashed Fakhruddin from Islamic Center of Nashville, and Rabbi Shanna Mackler from The Temple Nashville.  

“The support for this event in Nashville, and satellite gatherings in Middle, East, and West Tennessee, gives us confidence in what we can accomplish if we work together as Tennesseans,” said Todd Cruse, board chair of Voices for a Safer Tennessee. “Now we need everyone to stay involved in the democratic process. Contact your legislators to express support of stronger firearm safety laws, engage your families, neighbors, and friends in conversation about this public health crisis, and vote. We know progress will take time and the small wins we are already seeing will add up to impactful change.”

For more information about Voices for a Safer Tennessee and to watch the recorded livestream of the program, visit safertn.org.  

Photos from the event are available at this link: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1t6g8ePjob9T-yYW0M13Ogy67AT77JNR5?usp=sharing

About Voices for a Safer Tennessee:  
Voices for a Safer Tennessee (Safer TN) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan coalition of Tennessee families, faith leaders, business executives and educators, hunters, gunowners, veterans and military families, who are dedicated to prioritizing pragmatic, evidence-based firearm safety laws and promoting responsible firearm ownership. Our mission is to build safer, healthier communities by reducing preventable firearm tragedies across Tennessee. We are founded by, led by, and funded by Tennesseans, committed to Tennessee solutions, with 25,000 coalition members across all 95 counties and growing. Learn more at safertn.org.  

Media Contacts:  
Michelle Augusty, Voices for a Safer Tennessee, (850) 933-7202‬, michelle.augusty@gmail.com 
Kelly Brockman, McNeely Brockman PR, (615) 812-6513, kelly@mcneelybrockmanpr.com   
Mark Drury, Calvert Street Group, (615) 330-7587, mdrury@calvertstreet.com 

CNN: One year after Tennessee school shooting, thousands will join hands to honor victims of gun violence

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“CNN — In Nashville, one year after a shooting at a private school took six lives, thousands will come together to honor victims of gun violence and provide a visible demonstration in support of reform.

About 13,000 people are expected to form a four-mile human chain Wednesday beginning at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt where some of the victims of the shooting were taken a year ago. It will lead to the state Capitol.

The non-profit Voices for a Safer Tennessee is organizing the event to honor the victims of The Covenant School shooting, including three 9-year-old children, and the hundreds of other lives lost to gun violence in the last year, a national crisis showing few signs of slowing down.”

Continue reading at CNN.

New York Times: One Grieving Mother Hasn’t Given Up Hope for a Gun Control Compromise

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“A year after losing her daughter in the Covenant School shooting, Katy Dieckhaus is speaking about Evelyn, and the changes she wants to see.

The essence of Evelyn Dieckhaus is still there, captured in the pink Bible where she underlined the word “covenant” in silver ink, and in the beaming photos of her with her family.

…Her mother, Katy Dieckhaus, has since placed those pieces of her daughter’s memory into what she calls her “little Ev bag,” which she has carried with her as she takes her first steps into the intractable debate over gun control in Tennessee.”

Continue reading at The New York Times.