[B]"We can change the culture," [dottie] Lamm (gun control weenie) told the crowd. "This is just the beginning." [/B]
This man wants YOU disarmed.
[img]www.denverpost.com/media/paper36/May2001/mom0514.jpg[/img]
Million Mom rally turnout dips
Pro-gun hecklers blamed
By Ryan Morgan
Special to The Denver Post
Monday, May 14, 2001 - Attendance dipped at this year's Million Mom March rally, and event organizers blamed a crowd of black-clad, pro-gun
hecklers for keeping po tential supporters away.
"We're a little disappointed by the turnout," said Marilee Louis, co-president of the Denver chapter o f the Million
Mom March. "I think a lot of the women are a little nervous about those guys."
She was referring to members of the Tyranny Response Team, a pro-gun organization whose members regularly
attend Million Mom gun-control functions to shout their support for the Second Amendment.
About 250 people gathered for the Million Mom rally on the steps of the state Capitol, while about 100 Tyranny
Response Team members stood below. Last year, the rally drew 3,000 to 5,000 people.
Fearing a clash between the two groups, police cordoned off a buffer zone between the Million Mom attendees
and the Tyranny Response Team members, who met on the sidewalk on Lincoln Avenue. Forty Denver police
officers and 10 State Patrol officers we re stationed around the Capitol.
The Million Mom movement, whose slogan is "Sensible gun laws, safe kids," began with a march that attracted
750,000 in Washington, D.C., last Mother's Day, and has since added 240 chapters nationwide. This Mother's
Day saw Million Mom rallies in 46 s tates. The goal this year, organizers said, is to make the issue of gun control
less divisive.
"We want to move this from being a political question to being a public health question," said Karl Konrad, co-president of the Denver chapter. "We
have 10 kids dying every day, and we want people to know about that. If they were dying of anything ot her than guns, we would be doing
everything we could to solve the problem."
The rally featured entertainment from singer Hazel Miller, and speeches from Dottie Lamm and other gun-control advocates. Lamm praised the
Million Mom organization for helping to pass Amendment 22 last fall, which closed the "gun-show loophole" by re quiring background checks at gun
shows.
"We can change the culture," Lamm told the crowd. "This is just the beginning."
Tyranny Response Team members, some armed with megaphones, greeted her speech by shouting, "We will fight to the death," and "We will not
disarm."
One pro-gun demonstrator said that more gun-control laws would actually hurt the very people the Million Mom members want to protect.
"I think it's important to educate the public that gun owners help keep people safe," said Ari Armstrong, a Libertarian who demonstrated alongside
the Tyranny Response Team. "The Million Moms are well-intentioned, but they're making everybody less sa fe."