Just one day after a state-commissioned committee focused on gun violence research released a report suggesting that Massachusetts tighten its firearm legislation, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh joined the national coalition Mayors Against Illegal Guns which was co-created by his predecessor Mayor Tom Menino.
Mayors Against Illegal Guns was formed by Menino and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg back in 2006 to reduce gun violence, promote public safety and encourage community policing. Since its inception, 15 mayors of major American cities and more than 1.5 million grassroots supporters have joined the organization. It was only a matter of time before Mayor Walsh – who’s already vocalized his utter distaste for the amount of gun-related violence that’s occurred on the streets of Boston since he’s assumed office – upheld Menino’s legacy.
Said Mayor Walsh in a statement:
As mayor of Boston, I am committed to bringing an end to senseless gun violence in our neighborhoods. In my very first meeting as mayor, I brought together law enforcement, mothers of children killed by guns, and public safety advocates to start a new conversation on how we move forward together to make Boston a safer city. Already this year, Boston Police have taken more than 40 illegal handguns off our streets; we can do better to stop them from getting there in the first place. I’m proud to join mayors across the country to push a national agenda for common sense reforms.
Since January 1, 2014 there have been 13 shootings and eight gun fatalities, four times more gun-related deaths than this time last year. According to Mayor Walsh’s press office, in the upcoming months he plans on sitting down with a collection of entities, “including advocacy organizations, Boston Police command staff and officers on the front lines, community, faith and political leaders – regarding actions the City can take to treat trauma, get illegal guns off the street, and address underlying causes of violence.”
“I am proud to have co-founded this organization with Tom Menino and I know that we are both happy to welcome Mayor Walsh into the fight for stronger gun laws that will save lives,” said former Mayor Bloomberg. “Gun violence touches every community and the addition of Mayor Walsh to our coalition strengthens our efforts to demand that our leaders in Washington take action to end the bloodshed.”
One of Mayor Walsh’s first major appointments was tapping Bill Evans as Commissioner of the Boston Police. Together they made it abundantly clear that safety at the neighborhood level and reducing the amount of homicides in Boston’s communities was priority number one.
“Homicides are down right now at a 13-year low,” noted Evans in his first public appearance as Commissioner. “And like Mayor Walsh said in his speech the other day, like we all say, one homicide victim is too many … I promise to Mayor Walsh I’ll work my hardest to do that.”
