39 - Arizona, Gabby Giffords
My mom, winter resident of Arizona, helped me select my Arizona woman of note. Gabby Giffords is a woman my mom encouraged as a strong advocate for her beliefs and perseverence. And I couldn't agree more.
Arizona was the 31st state to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment on February 12, 1920.
Ms. Giffords, the third woman to sit on the US House of Representatives from Arizona, resigned following a severe brain trauma from an assassination attempt in 2011.
Early in her business career, she returned to Arizona as the CEO of her grandfather’s tire company “El Campo Tire Warehouses”. Following that, she moved through the Arizona politics until being elected to the US House of Representatives.
Starting her third term, she was shot in the head during an event with constituents in a mass shooting and assassination attempt. Eight months later, she regained her ability to walk, speak, read and write, and returned to the House floor to a standing ovation. She returned on last time to Obama’s State of the Union to provide her resignation, again to cheers and accolades of her peers.
As a politician, she advocated for education, renewable energy, immigration and border reform. She created bills to raise the allowance of H1-B visas in the country, but the legislation did not make it to the floor.
Following her incident and recovery, her husband and Ms. Giffords started a political action committee to promote gun control legislation to keep guns out of the hands of terrorists, criminals, and mentally ill. Her advocacy for Mental Health carried throughout her career, and named Legislator of the Year 2004 by Mental Health Association in Arizona.
Why this woman?
Gun violence on the rise in my adult life is one of the more terrifying issues of the millennium. The escalation and frequency of the events are growing beyond comprehension. The event in Las Vegas at a concert struck home to me as it was the type of event I attend, and it is where people are most vulnerable in a crowded space with limited access or control of the environment. The Batman movie shooting in the dark overwhelmed by the scenes of the movie. Children attending school. Friends shooting friends. Young losing control of what they think they can do.
I would hope that the life of Gabby would have given the momentum of the government to turn and change on their policies. But that has not occurred. There is still advocacy toward gun rights over gun control. Washington State has worked to make moves toward control, but the legislations did not find the balance that allows people that need protection to get it. Gabby still stands as a model of how these events affect people. I am sure it is a daily reminder of the event.
I hear the other side for gun rights but I don’t understand it. I do see the images of kids holding large guns. Mentally ill people struggling to get through the day, and pushing back on the people around them.
I appreciate the voice Gabby continues to give to the need for change. She is understandable and open to the sides. She persevered and fought for her life, and became the voice we can stand behind.
Arizona was the 31st state to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment on February 12, 1920.
Ms. Giffords, the third woman to sit on the US House of Representatives from Arizona, resigned following a severe brain trauma from an assassination attempt in 2011.
Early in her business career, she returned to Arizona as the CEO of her grandfather’s tire company “El Campo Tire Warehouses”. Following that, she moved through the Arizona politics until being elected to the US House of Representatives.
Starting her third term, she was shot in the head during an event with constituents in a mass shooting and assassination attempt. Eight months later, she regained her ability to walk, speak, read and write, and returned to the House floor to a standing ovation. She returned on last time to Obama’s State of the Union to provide her resignation, again to cheers and accolades of her peers.
As a politician, she advocated for education, renewable energy, immigration and border reform. She created bills to raise the allowance of H1-B visas in the country, but the legislation did not make it to the floor.
Following her incident and recovery, her husband and Ms. Giffords started a political action committee to promote gun control legislation to keep guns out of the hands of terrorists, criminals, and mentally ill. Her advocacy for Mental Health carried throughout her career, and named Legislator of the Year 2004 by Mental Health Association in Arizona.
Why this woman?
Gun violence on the rise in my adult life is one of the more terrifying issues of the millennium. The escalation and frequency of the events are growing beyond comprehension. The event in Las Vegas at a concert struck home to me as it was the type of event I attend, and it is where people are most vulnerable in a crowded space with limited access or control of the environment. The Batman movie shooting in the dark overwhelmed by the scenes of the movie. Children attending school. Friends shooting friends. Young losing control of what they think they can do.
I would hope that the life of Gabby would have given the momentum of the government to turn and change on their policies. But that has not occurred. There is still advocacy toward gun rights over gun control. Washington State has worked to make moves toward control, but the legislations did not find the balance that allows people that need protection to get it. Gabby still stands as a model of how these events affect people. I am sure it is a daily reminder of the event.
I hear the other side for gun rights but I don’t understand it. I do see the images of kids holding large guns. Mentally ill people struggling to get through the day, and pushing back on the people around them.
I appreciate the voice Gabby continues to give to the need for change. She is understandable and open to the sides. She persevered and fought for her life, and became the voice we can stand behind.
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