KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – With Governor Gretchen Whitmer signing into law a number of gun safety measures for Michigan, gun violence awareness or “Wear Orange” events have been taking place all across the state.
Community members gathered at Kalamazoo’s Bronson Park on Monday, June 5 to honor the lives of those affected by gun violence, as well as highlight gun violence prevention efforts across the country. And they did this by wearing orange…Orange shirts that is.
The event welcomed area advocates from gun violence prevention organizations, faith leaders, as well as a number of gun violence survivors who shared their stories. Kalamazoo resident Patrice Fuller lost her husband to gun violence in March of 2020. She spoke of how a heated argument over a youth sporting event changed her life, and that of her children.
Another one who shared their story, a mother of a student attending Michigan State University during the February 13th mass shooting where three students were killed and five others were injured.
Other upcoming events, locations and times for Michigan are listed below:
Saturday, June 10 12 p.m. – Ypsilanti – Community Outreach & Gun Violence Rally at Prospect Park. Click for event details
Saturday, June 17
Ann Arbor – St. Aidan’s Episcopal Church
Time TBD – Speakers and Serenity Walk in Nature Habitat
(Partners: St. Aidan’s, Moms Demand Action, Physicians for the Prevention of Gun Violence, EGVMI)
Detroit – Church of the Messiah Detroit
10 a.m. – Press Conference
11 a.m. – Memorial March
12 p.m. – Resource Fair
(Partners: Church of the Messiah, Charles W. Reid Community Help Center, EGVMI)
Grand Haven – Central Park
11 a.m. – Silent March Begins
12:30 p.m. – March Ends with Local Music Performances (St. John’s Episcopal Church Grand Haven)
(Partners: Church of the Dunes, St. John’s, EGVMII)
Muskegon – Community United Methodist Church
6:30 p.m. – Refreshments and Resources
7:00 p.m. – FREE screening of “Won’t Back Down” the Gabby Giffords Documentary
(Partners: Community UMC and EGVMI)
Oxford – Centennial Park
11:30 a.m. – Sign Making and Resource Tables
12:30 p.m. – Youth Speakers from NFWT and MFOL
1:30 p.m. – Walk to Oxford High School
(Partners: No Future Without Today, March For Our Lives, Moms Demand Action, EGVMI)
Pontiac – City of Pontiac Juneteenth Freedom Day Celebration https://www.pontiac.mi.us/newsdetail_T2_R491.php)
9 a.m. to 4 p.m. – Gun Violence Prevention and Safety Resources at the Oakland Forward table (Partners: Oakland Forward, EGVMI)
Southfield – St. David’s Episcopal Church
12 p.m. – Art Exhibit Dedication and Speakers
1 p.m. – Metro Detroit Peace March
(Partners: Moms Demand Action, Huntington Woods Peace Group, St. David’s, Hindu Community Relations Council, EGVMI)
*Flint – Date and Location TBD
Gun BuyBack with Flint Police Department
(Partners: North Flint Neighborhood Action Council, EGVMI)
Sunday, June 25
Detroit. 2:00 p.m. Muhammad Mosque #1 (19160 Evergreen Rd, Detroit), March, rally and distribution of basic needs items. Organized by the Charles W. Reid Community Help Center.
Wear Orange started eight years ago on June 2nd in Chicago when teenagers started a movement, wearing orange to honor gun violence victim Hadyia Pendleton. The 15-year-old was shot and killed on a playground two years before the movement started according to event organizers.
