Survivors of the Aurora theater massacre and families of victims have planned a memorial event around noon on Friday -- an event that has turned into a dual rally for gun control and gun rights.
Beginning Friday afternoon, to mark the one-year anniversary of the Aurora theater mass shooting that killed 12 people and injured another 70, the names of Aurora shooting victims -- as well the names of thousands of other victims of gun violence -- will be read in memorial to them. The reading will continue until 12:38 a.m. on Saturday, July 20, the exact time that the Aurora shooting began in 2012, when the group will hold a moment of silence for the victims and their families.
The remembrance will be joined by Mayors Against Illegal Guns, a gun control group co-chaired by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, as well as several Newtown families and gun violence prevention advocates. The event is part of Mayors Against Illegal Guns "No More Names" bus tour to reduce gun violence.
"I will forever live with the immense grief that comes with losing a child," said Tom Sullivan, whose 27-year-old son Alex was killed in the Aurora theater shooting. "Too many people had to bury their loved ones after the massacre in Aurora, and too many Americans continue to see the tragic toll of gun violence each and every day in this country. As we remember my son and the victims of Aurora today, I hope our nation will take meaningful action to protect our families by keeping guns out of the wrong hands – so no more fathers have to experience this anguish."
But the victims, their families and the members of Mayors Against Illegal Guns will also be joined by Rocky Mountain Gun Owners, a pro-gun group that will be holding a protest for gun rights during the Aurora memorial. Both the memorial and the protest are scheduled to begin at noon on Friday.
The Associated Press reports that both groups were issued permits for locations at Cherry Creek State Park that are within sight of each other.
Dudley Brown, executive director of RMGO, says that the fact that the memorial was organized by Mayors Against Illegal Guns makes it political, not simply a remembrance.
rest http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/19/aurora-memorial_n_3622921.html?ir=Denver&utm_campaign=071913&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Alert-denver&utm_content=Title
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