In the 1980s, I made a pilgrimage to Auschwitz. I was most horrified by a huge pile of baby shoes, a living reminder of the mass murder of Jewish children. I have never forgotten.

In the United States today, guns are the leading cause of death of our children. Day after day, we witness the murder of our children mowed down by assault weapons, most notably AR-15s, notorious for destroying the human body beyond recognition. When the Uvalde school shooting happened in Texas, one 10-year-old girl could only be identified by her shoes, her green sneakers.

Like most Americans, I am beyond frustrated by the lack of courage of our political leaders to pass the necessary legislation to protect the public from mass killings. According to Everytown for Gun Safety, “researchers estimate that if we still had a federal assault weapons ban, we’d see 70% fewer mass shooting deaths.”

I recently called the offices of our Maine congressional delegation. This is what I learned: Sen. Angus King is currently not in favor of a ban on assault weapons; Sen. Susan Collins is “neutral, no decision”; Rep. Jared Golden is against a ban; only Rep. Chellie Pingree is in favor of banning assault weapons.

Yes, they have all worked on gun safety issues. But it is clearly not enough. I urge our Maine delegation to come together and ban assault weapons. Our children’s shoes must no longer be evidence that something horrific and preventable happened on our watch.

Jeanette A. Good
Falmouth

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