Suburban moms band together for grassroots phone bank to change gun laws at a national level
Their efforts were timed to coincide with the march in Washington D.C. in wake of Highland Park shooting
WINNETKA, Ill. (WLS) -- The Highland Park shooting has spawned a grassroots effort by some suburban mothers to change gun laws at a national level.
They banded together Wednesday morning to make phone calls in a key U.S. Senate race.
Their efforts were timed to coincide with the march in Washington D.C.
The group of Winnetka moms worked the phones to nudge potential voters in Georgia to support the reelection efforts of Democrat Senator Raphael Warnock, who is in a close race with Republican Herschel Walker.
Warnock supports more gun control laws.
The effort was organized by Bailey Morris and sparked by the July 4 shooting in Highland Park
"I think that our community needed a place to come together, to feel like we were doing something, to try to make a change," Morris said.
Morris, who is a mother of three, said she has no prior background in activism or politics but tapped into her friend network to get 100 people to take part, in-person or virtually, in a three-hour phone banking effort.
"I have young children and I've always been an advocate for common sense gun reform," said volunteer Kristen Cross. "We were at the Winnetka parade right as it finished and were asked to evacuate rather suddenly. I almost felt like it was our worst nightmare happening right in front of our eyes."
"You make 10, 15 phone calls. Maybe you get one person on the phone, but I do believe that little by little we can do a lot," Morris added.
The volunteers are encouraged just by being a part of this grass-roots effort.
"I definitely feel empowered and I feel like I'm with a bunch of moms who are also incredibly empowered. We are supporting each other and it's all for a cause that is incredibly important," Cross said.
"There was a lot of feedback of, I want to do something, I don't know what to do, thank you for putting this together, keep me posted, especially from folks who couldn't make it this morning," Morris said.
Morris isn't sure whether she will try and organize another phone banking effort or not, but one thing is clear, she and her network of friends are not done being advocates and trying to make a difference.
