Not One More chant was the hymn of over 20,000 mourners at a memorial service for California shooting victims. According to The Telegraph, a father of one of the victims in the California university mass shooting, Richard Martinez, called for tighter legislation on gun control, hence the Not One More chant together with other supporters.
Richard Martinez is the father of one of the victims of the "virgin killer" Elliot Rodger. On Tuesday, Martinez called for government action on gun control at a memorial service for the dead.
According to NBC News, an estimated 20,000 people composed of students professors and local residents went into an open-air stadium for the event in the university town of Isla Vista, California which gave way to the Not One More chant.
The son of Richard Martinez who spearheaded the government action on gun control is 20-year-old Christopher Martinez. Christopher is reportedly one of the six students murdered by Rodger during his rampage in the town on Friday. Richard Martinez is a criminal defence lawyer, and together with the mourners, he made the Not One More chant. He reportedly told mourners at the event, "There haven't been any leaders on this issue. Yesterday, I got a call from a congressperson to express their condolences for what had happened."
Before they made the Not One More chant, Martinez also said, "I told that person I was not interested in a phone call of condolence, that was not acceptable, until they went back to Congress and did something. They have done nothing and that is why Chris died. This situation has gone on far too long, we all know it. It has almost become a normal thing for us to accept this. It's not normal. It is just intolerable."
People at the event in California did a standing ovation for what Martinez had said. After his speech, he reportedly led the crowd in the Not One More chant. He also encouraged the people present to send postcards bearing the same message to politicians.
According to The Telegraph, Rodger has been long suffering from Asperger's. Despite that fact, he had been legally allowed to buy three semi-automatic handguns and more than 400 rounds of ammunition. Reports say that he stabbed his three roommates to death before he went on the shooting spree which killed three more students. An additional 13 people were also wounded in the attack. After all the chaos, Rodger then committed suicide by shooting himself.
Earlier in the ceremony with the Not One More chant, former US Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, who is also the president of the University of California, said, "I wish I were not here for a day of mourning and reflection, none of us wants to be here for an occasion like this. We are here in this moment of loss because there is a human desire to reach out together for love and support."
After the killing incident and before the event with the Not One More chant, two California Assembly members have reportedly already proposed legislation that would create a gun violence restraining order. Reports say that the order could be hunted from a judge by police if family members and friends requested it.
Nancy Skinner, an assemblywoman and one of the people who sponsored the proposal, said: "When someone is in crisis the people closest to them are often the first to spot the warning signs, but almost nothing can now be done to get back their guns or prevent them from buying more."
Not One More chant calling for tighter legislation on gun control may be considered maybe only after a long procedure, but together with the effort of over 20,000 people concerned, the legislation may soon be implemented.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
