Newtown Families Go to Washington

On Tuesday, Newtown families attended the inaugural Sandy Hook Promise dinner in Washington, reports Philly.com.

Residents and lawmakers gathered in the hope of furthering their work to prevent gun violence. Last week’s shooting in Charleston, SC underscored that mass shootings have failed to change the politics of gun control.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal was in attendance and said, “We are not going away.” He noted that 54 senators had supported Pennsylvania Sen. Pat Toomey’s bill to expand background checks - but that was still six votes shy of what it needed to advance.

Sen. Chris Murphy called the lack of Senate discussion on the issue “a moral outrage.”

Parent Nicole Hockley and other leaders of Sandy Hook Promise said they were looking beyond Congress to make progress, hoping community programs instead would help stem the violence.

For more, visit Philly.com.