SANTA CLARITA, Calif. – As the chair of the board for Women Against Gun Violence, it’s part of Loren Lieb’s job to follow the heartbreaking coverage of mass shootings.
“You think about the parents," Lieb said watching the coverage of the Saugus High School shooting in Santa Clarita, Calif. "They are waiting to get reunited with their kids. There’s some parents that don’t get reunited.”
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Each time these tragedies happen, Lieb is filled with emotion and frustration. She says prayers are not enough and Women Against Gun Violence continues to push for gun safety awareness and legislation.
“My grief is followed by anger because these things could be prevented," Lieb said.
Lieb feels so strongly because she knows what it’s like to experience the fear and panic stoked by gun violence firsthand. Her son, Josh, was just six-years-old when he became the victim of a mass shooting at the North Valley Jewish Community Center in Granada Hills, Calif.
That shooting was motivated by anti-semitism and happened just four months after Columbine in 1999. It made international headlines.
Lieb's son survived. He is now 26 and is also a chair member of Lieb's advocacy group.
“It was very shocking," Lieb said. "Not like today when we have mass shooting after mass shooting after mass shooting and we don’t know which city will be a headline on which particular day.”
One of Lieb's goals at Women Against Gun Violence is to spread of message of ‘No Notoriety,' and she wishes more media outlets had policies to limit the coverage of shooter names and photos. She worries that can lead to glorifying the shooter and could motivate copycats.
But Lieb says her biggest concern comes down to gun safety: who is able to get guns, keep guns and how they are stored away from children and teens. Safe gun storage is another top issue for her.
“We need to be proactive rather than reactive," Lieb said. "Our priority is keeping guns away from people who shouldn’t have them.”
And that mission will continue until she feels her political leaders are paying attention.