Mayors of Jacksonville and Beaches sign proclamation Friday is Violence Awareness Day

The mayors of Jacksonville and the beaches signed a proclamation saying Friday is gun violence awareness day.

Atlantic Beach Mayor Glasser says it’s time to take action against gun violence.

“To say ‘Hey, it’s time for common-sense gun legislation. And so I’m proud to support that as Atlantic Beach just like the other beach mayors and just like Mayor Curry.”

The proclamation references a few gun violence statistics that support the need for gun violence awareness,

It says Americans are 26 times more likely to die from homicide by guns than in other high-income countries, and Florida, alone, has 2,849 gun homicides a year.

This kind of data is exactly why many other cities are also taking action.

“Trying to encourage common-sense gun legislation comes on the heels of this very emotional set of mass shootings,” Glasser says.

Katie Hathaway, a mom who volunteers with Moms Demand Action, says the Senate needs to take action to prevent more deaths.

“Now is the time for the Senate to act and pass some common-sense gun laws. To reduce the violence we are seeing.”

Sixteen major Florida municipalities have signed, but Jacksonville was not on the list.

Glasser said she wanted to be included- but was unable, as the beaches are considered too small.

“When I heard about the letter, I reached out to the Florida league of mayors and I said I want to sign!”

Action News Jax reached out to Mayor Curry to ask why he didn’t sign the letter in 2019 or now-. Though we did not get a response, Glasser says Jacksonville may be too large for Mayor Curry to get involved in things like that.

“Jacksonville is really an anomaly. It’s such a large city. I don’t know. His issues are almost like running a state anyway. It’s almost like a governor if you will.”

Despite the size, local moms with Moms Demand Action tell me they believe Jacksonville needs to get involved sooner rather than later.

“Don’t wait until gun violence impacts you directly to get involved,” Hathaway said.

This is why more than 200 mayors sent a letter to the Senate demanding common-sense gun laws.

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