Gabby Giffords and Edna Chavez Refuse to Be Silenced on Gun Control
Outspoken and unconventional, these brazen women are beacons of change who refuse to conform. As they dare to do the impossible, encouraging young visionaries to break-not just push-boundaries, they inspire people around the world to stand up for what they believe in. Here, Gabrielle Giffords and Edna Chavez open up about their fight for gun control for our 2018 #WomenWhoDare series.
Gabrielle Giffords: When you took the stage at the March For Our Lives, I was blown away. You painted a vivid picture of how gun violence affects your everyday life. Your words and your emotion captivated the nation. People noticed your bravery. People noticed you weren’t afraid to share your pain and yet still stand tall. Now your story and courage is inspiring other young people across the country to join our fight for gun safety. You’re part of history!
Edna Chavez: Well, what I learned from you is that despite anything and everything: La lucha sigue. The fight goes on. Despite everything that came your way, you picked yourself up and uplifted not just your voice and story, but the stories of others all around the nation. You never let anything stop you from fighting for what is right, and ‘till this day, you have supported many others affected by gun violence.
Gabrielle: One of my heroes is Congressman John Lewis. Before he turned 18 he became an activist. By 23, he spoke to the world from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during the March on Washington. His torch has been passed to activists like you, who are finding their voice. Seeing young people, like you, stand up for what’s right reminds me of what makes America exceptional. Always remember you are not alone. We are in this fight together! Putting pressure on our leaders to take action and demanding a safer future is the best way to witness change.
Edna: What frustrates me is that a lot of older people tell us that we're the future and that we're going to make a change, but right now we're doing that and it's like they want to put a stop to us, or to diminish our opinions, our thoughts, our movements. They don’t really listen. But I also have to commend those, like you, who continue to work with us to use their platform to bring awareness to the work that we're doing as young activists.
Gabrielle: Part of being a leader is not giving up when others are shrugging their shoulders and saying a problem can’t be solved. When you look back at some of the most important movements in American history, it’s clear that progress takes time. The gun lobby should be worried because people from all corners of the country are finding the courage to stand up to them. We always knew the fight to strengthen gun laws would be a marathon not a sprint. Today you see candidates, members of Congress, and state legislatures more willing to address gun violence. Public support to enact tougher gun safety laws is higher than we’ve ever seen before. But at the same time we need to move faster. We need to stay involved. We need to go to rallies. Call elected officials. Register to vote and if people can’t vote, they need to remind others to go vote. We have to keep up the pressure. It’s still frustrating that dozens of Americans-toddlers, kids, and adults-die every single day from a gunshot. We’ve got to stand together as Americans and say we can do better. We must do better. Now is the time to demand action.
Edna: From you, we can learn patience.
Gabrielle: Fighting for safer gun laws can be hard. In many ways, it reminds me of what is was like recovering from being shot. Each step took a tremendous amount of work and support. But I was determined to get better. Today, I give speeches around the country in support of gun safety, I ride my bike, and do yoga. The same is true for the movement to fight gun violence and make our communities safer. It’s important to celebrate the small victories, because it’s those victories that will build up to bigger ones. It’s important to keep your head up. There will be exhilarating moments, no doubt, but it’s important to push through the hard times. People may criticize you, or even yell at you. It’s important to not let them get you down. Stay focused on your goals and keep going. The students who have held rallies, walked out of their schools, and marched into the streets, are blazing a trail prior generations of gun safety activists could not have imagined. Your energy and determination is inspiring to my generation. Using tools like social media to speak truth to power in real time creates a sense of nationwide community, and action, that my generation has never seen before.
Edna: I hope other young people can use that as motivation. This is our time, literally. People always tell us that we're the future. Well, you know what? I’m 18. I can vote, and I sure will.
Gabrielle: You’ve joined a proud tradition of student activists in this country. Knowing the dangers of this issue at your age shows just how much gun violence has permeated our society, and I hope more people your age begin to speak out.
Edna: Gun control has always been such a huge topic in low income communities, especially communities with people of color. We've lost many people. I've lost many people personally, and I have been affected by it personally. Whether it's me living in a neighborhood where you hear gunshots on a daily basis and you hear the helicopters passing through and shining the light through your window late at night, or just hearing your neighborhood talk about how that one kid on the block got shot. It's something that's been normalized, and it shouldn't have been normalized from the beginning, but unfortunately it has.
My activism didn't just start with gun violence. The root of it was always immigration. I was personally affected by it, by having my father taken away in 2016. I lost [my brother] Ricardo when I was younger, and that did traumatize me. But I didn't know how to react to it. I always molded my feelings in this box where it's just, it happens. This is the norm. So then when that happened with my dad, I was already introduced to activism, and I decided that I shouldn't allow this to happen anymore. Hearing the judge telling me that I wasn't going to have my father with me anymore, that was painful. This judge looked at me dead in the eye and told me "your father won't be coming back".
People need to put themselves almost in an uncomfortable position, where you become very outspoken. If there's something you disagree with or an opinion you have, you should just do it, take action, speak up. Nobody can ever silence us ever again, because this is our time. Use that as motivation, and whenever somebody tries to shut you down, shut them back down with your words and your empowerment.
Gabrielle: It takes courage today to stand up and speak out for what’s right. And Edna, you know why it is important to have your voice heard. If that’s not daring I don’t know what is.
Photography by Williams & Hirakawa; Video by Williams & Hirakawa; Styling by Anya Ziourova and Assistant Alyx Cohen; Hair by Ericka Verett and Makeup by Golden Shyne; On Gabby Giffords: Necklace by Beladora; Bracelet by VRAM; Dress by Khaite Melinda; On Edna: Earrings by Jennifer Fisher; Full Outfit by Rachel Comey; Shoes are personal by Steve Madden; Digital Design by Moira Gilligan
('You Might Also Like',)
