Thank You Dick’s Sporting Goods

Today, Dick’s Sporting Goods announced that it will no longer sell assault weapons, as well as ban high capacity magazines and bump stocks, and only sell firearms to those at least 21 years of age. Ceasefire commends this courageous stance of Dick’s for doing what many Americans think a responsible gun seller should do. We also find this announcement as good news for a state which has suffered too much loss of life to assault weapons, notably:

• 1999 The Columbine High School massacre where 12 students and 1 educator were murdered, some with a TEC-9 assault pistol
• 2012 The Aurora Theater Massacre, where 12 were murdered and another 70 wounded.
• 2015 The Colorado Springs street shooting on Halloween Eve where 3 were murdered.
• 2015 The Colorado Springs Planned Parenthood attack where 3 were shot and killed, including a police officer.
• 2017 The Highlands Ranch New Years Eve murder of a sheriff’s deputy. 6 were wounded.

The Violence Policy Center reports that in 2016 one in four law enforcement officers slain in the line of duty were shot with assault weapons (www.vpc.org).

The Valentine’s Day murder of 14 students and 3 educators at a high school in Parkland, Florida has raised awareness of the lethality of these weapons. Assault weapons were developed for battlefield use, but the gun industry has a great source of revenue by marketing these to civilians. Unfortunately, their substantial profits translate into the deaths of too many Americans in mass shootings.

With this action, Dick’s is way ahead of its commercial competitors, but in lock-step with the American people. A new poll out today from Florida Atlantic University found that 70% of Floridians want stricter gun laws and 69% support an assault weapons ban. These are residents of a state that has some of the weakest firearms laws in the country, having earned itself the nickname of “Gunshine State.”

Dick’s Sporting Goods has 9 stores in the Denver metro area, out of its 675 stores nationwide. Their mission is “to be recognized by our customers as the #1 sports and fitness specialty omni-channel retailer that serves and inspires athletes and outdoor enthusiasts to achieve their personal best through the relentless improvement of everything we do.” Tom Mauser, of Colorado Ceasefire and whose son Daniel was shot and killed at Columbine, suggested that the retailer add to its mission statement “We put the health and safety of our communities foremost.” He further recommended that other sporting goods stores follow suit.