by Gina Daschbach

During Congress’ summer recess this month, members of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America are holding lemonade stands across the country to pressure Congress to pass background check legislation when they return in the fall. Moms Demand Action NY Hudson Valley Chapter will take part locally on August 27th from 11am – 1pm at The Sign of the Times, 112 Main Street, Nyack.

Congress gave America lemons in April when the Senate failed to pass common-sense legislation that would have expanded background checks on all gun sales. Moms were disappointed by the Senate’s failure to act, but we were not deterred, and we’re making lemonade out of the lemons we were given. Our lemonade stands are our way of taking a stand: American moms demand new and stronger gun laws, and we’re not going away. Congress must act to protect our children and families from gun violence.

Lemonade stands are being held in big cities and small towns across the country, including Brooklyn, Atlanta, Boston, Charlotte, Cleveland, Indianapolis, Phoenix, San Diego, Tampa and Washington, DC.

Moms will be able to fill out postcards to their legislators at each lemonade stand. In Nyack, they will be thanking Congresswoman Nita Lowey for her commitment to working on new and stronger gun laws when they return from recess. Recently, the congresswoman offered an amendment that would instruct the US Attorney General to stop sales of firearms and explosives when there is reason to believe the buyer is engaged in, preparing for, or related to acts of terrorism. Under this legislation, a terror suspect would be unable to pass a criminal background check or purchase guns or explosives from federally licensed dealers. However, the amendment was voted down.

In addition to the Moms Demand Action Lemonade Stands, all moms and members are being asked to share their “recipe” for lemonade with their members of Congress through social media. Lemonade recipe instructions can be found at MomsDemandAction.org. Recipes should be emailed to photos@momsdemandaction.org, or Tweet and Instagram the photos using the #lemons2lemonade and #momsdemandaction.

Gina Daschbach, is NY Hudson Valley Chapter Leader for Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, a national organization created to build support for common-sense gun legislation. The nonpartisan grassroots movement of American mothers is demanding new and stronger solutions to lax gun laws and loopholes that jeopardize the safety of our children and families. In just seven months, the organization has more than 100,000 members with chapters in 40 states across the country.

Illustration by ©2013 Bill Batson, Nyack Sketch Log