‘Gays Against Guns’ begin campaign of civil disobedience to protest US gun laws
By Will Stroude
A number of LGBT activists have started a campaign of protests aimed at gun companies and those who invest in them, beginning with a “die-in” at BlackRock, a major investor in gun companies.
Protesters held photos of gun violence victims as they occupied BlackRock’s Manhattan headquarters yesterday (August 15).
Die in at @blackrock right now! #dropyourgunstocks #gagiswatching #baddayatblackrock pic.twitter.com/Rnuuz3q6zO
— Gays Against Guns (@GAGnoguns) August 15, 2016
Duncan Osborne, one of the organizers of the Gays Against Guns movement, said they chose BlackRock to target because the company “was singing the praises of its gun stocks in its annual report”, which he described as “amoral” and “wrong”. According to the Guardian, BlackRock held over $16m in shares from various guns companies.
https://twitter.com/yezyes/status/765359986994061312
John Grauwiler, a 45-year-old New York City schoolteacher and co-founder of GAG, said: “It’s us or them. End your relationship with the death business or the LGBTQ community ends its relationship with you.”
Another activist, Ken Kidd, said “these companies give discounts to NRA members and we want them to know that you can court the LGBT dollar, but if you get into bed with the NRA, we’re going to fucking break up with you.
“They will know we are a force to be reckoned with.”
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