Kate Ranta, a former advocate for the Bloomberg-funded Everytown for Gun Safety. (Photo: HuffPo)
Everytown for Gun Safety styles itself as a “movement” of “everyday Americans” working together to make communities safer, but a recent op-ed from a former volunteer is calling that grassroots-led identity into question.
Kate Ranta, a former Everytown Survival Fellow by virtue of a gunshot wound suffered at the hands of her estranged husband, published an op-ed in the Huffington Post blasting the anti-gun organization’s top-down bureaucratic structure.
“For too long, gun control groups like Everytown have implemented top-down organizational models that treat gun violence prevention advocates like servants and gun violence survivors like fundraising fodder, giving us little or no say in our own advocacy. That must end now,” she said.
Her consternation began after learning that Everytown sponsored the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) conference in 2015 and planned to do so again this year. Police organizations attract support from a wide variety of sectors, and this year’s conference was also sponsored by the National Rifle Association, Beretta, and First Tactical.
Volunteering for an organization that planned to appear at the same conference as the NRA was too much for Ranta.
“Nothing prepared me… for the Facebook post I saw this past weekend detailing Everytown’s financial support of the FOP,” she complained. “A friend of mine was looking at FOP’s website when she noticed that Everytown was listed as a sponsor of their upcoming national conference in Nashville — right alongside the NRA, First Tactical, and Beretta — the company that made the handgun my estranged husband shot me with.”
Ranta complained to Everytown headquarters about the FOP’s “noxious” record promoting pro-gun legislation, but she was told to stop using “inflammatory language” and ordered to wait for Everytown to issue a statement on the matter.
Everytown caved to the pressure and pulled out of the conference. But instead of acknowledging their sin, they issued a statement explaining that they left the FOP conference due to the inclusion of a Tulsa, Oklahoma, police officer named Betty Shelby. In 2016 Shelby shot and killed an unarmed black man named Terence Crutcher, but was acquitted of all charges.
“We believe the inclusion of former officer Shelby is a gesture that will only inflame the divisions that exist between communities of color and law enforcement,” the statement read.
That wasn’t good enough for Ranta.
“While yes, the participation of Officer Shelby in the conference (on a panel) is very disturbing, that is far from the only criticism that Everytown’s volunteers and survivors have about the FOP,” Ranta said. “Even if Shelby had never been invited to this conference, Everytown’s 2015 and 2017 sponsorship of the conference would have been wrong. That needs to be clear.”
Ranta resigned as an Everytown Survivor Fellow after being blocked by the Survivor Network Facebook page for voicing her concerns about the sponsorship.
“My conclusion is that dissenting voices have no place in these organizations. You toe the line or you’re out,” she said.
Ranta ends her rant by encouraging her readers to join “authentic” anti-gun organizations that “truly run from the local level” and don’t take advantage of survivors and their stories.
First, we need to be clear on the FOP. They do not really care about the 2nd Amendment other than acting to preserve gun rights for present and retired police officers. If a ban on guns or magazines exempts the police, they will support it or at least look the other way. The FOP leadership that is, not the rank and file members.
I am very sorry Ms. Ranta was shot by her ex-husband, but her ex shot her, not the gun. If he did not have a gun, he would have likely used a hammer, a crowbar, or a knife, but I don’t see anyone, including Ms. Ranta, calling for the abolition of hammers, crowbars, or knives, Liberals who support gun control seem incapable of understanding that it is not the weapon that commits the crime; it is the criminal holding the weapon and criminals have been using weapons since the stone-age. Mayor Bloomberg and his minions are very smart people who manipulate the emotions of people like Ms. Ranta for their own satisfaction. They tell you it’s about gun control, but it’s actually just about control. Gun control activists are the new fascists.
She should not feel “betrayed,” she should feel stupid.
I realize that it is an old cliche’, but “the enemy of my enemy is my friend” applies here. While the FOP may be pro-gun, it is also anti-crime. “Everytown” should be commended for its brief, however insincere support for law enforcement. Too bad they realized how that showed their hypocrisy.
I’m an NRA Eddie Eagle volunteer and I feel the same about the “Mothers,” who do encourage safe and secure gun storage but offer no assistance to that end while criticizing both the NRA and NSSF (who through its “Operation Childsafe” not only encourages safe gun storage but also hands out gun locks, free of charge). Perhaps if they embraced both of these programs we would have fewer gun-related tragedies.
Wonder what she would have joined if her husband, instead of shooting her, had ran her down with a Ford Taurus.
Chevy? GMC?
Exactly what I thought!
Oh no u did nt! Fiat?
As the sun rises, another Snowflake melts…
They are just using you too line their pockets. It took you long enough to figure that one out, now how long will it take you to realize the gun is not the cause of the violence done to you?
BINGO!
Dude, the article wasn’t written by the women. To whoem are you writing a response?
Poor thing, but then she’s hasn’t the brains to realize that ANY anti gun organization is made up of those who profit off others emotions.
Look it up, every person ever involved in running these organizations has made money off them, often making them rich!
And what would their success obtain for her personally?
Nothing, if not guns, hammers, bats, knives, cars, or whatever.
The world is NOT safe, it can’t be, not under ANY circumstances.
People are what make the world ‘unsafe’, and unless you control them, you can’t achieve total safety.
Hey, Ranta: taking away my guns would NOT have prevented your stupid husband from shooting you. Next time, pick a better mate
Just think if her ex had run her over with a Honda Accord, she would have to join Everytown for Vehicle Safety and couldn’t be involved with anything sponsored by automotive manufactuers, dealers, parts stores, etc.; could never travel because some portion of it would support the automotive industry; and couldn’t even leave her home for fear of encountering one of the millions of evil auto owners ominously lurking about the public roadways.
So, she was upset they weren’t as rabid and delusional as her, and even after she got her way, she was still a whiny, delusional victim card nutter.
Right, so, why was this written about again?
This is the way ALL leftist organizations work. Follow the party line, or else.
So she blames the gun her husband used to shoot her but never considers her own dumb choice to marry the guy in the first place.
Unfortunately for this young lady she has already lost any credibility in the real world for believing that it is the Beretta’s fault and not her estranged husband. I am fortunate that my daughters have very good husbands but past boyfriends have put them in a position that if it had become necessary, they would NOT have been a helpless victim as we taught them that you meet force with force and you do not whine the someone else should have done something or that an inanimate object is to blame. You take personal responsibility and protect yourself.
She probably would not like my guns either.
Despite the fact that hundreds of people go by my front door every day,
NONE of my several guns(including some bad a*s “looking” AR’s) have “Ever” – gotten up,
gone out the door and Shot Anyone! Not even “One” damn Person in all these years.
Damn Incredible!! How can that be??
Same for my daily carry and BUG gun “on me” and my “Trunk AR” I keep in my car and take to town every day passing thousands of people.
Not even one F*cking person!!. For many years now!! Has been shot with “”any”” of my guns.!!
Incredible. Including thousands of shots fired at the range with all of them!
Damn if I know what the F*ck is wrong with them.
Maybe she knows??
It would seem that Ranta was not receiving as much fawning attention for her personal situation from Everytown as she evidently believed she deserved.
Her personal crusade was not made center-stage in the organization as she may have had hoped it might, but was instead absorbed by Everytown’s agenda, relegating it to relative obscurity, and it appears she took issue with that. Being told by Everytown to, in effect, sit down and shut up, made her realize her position within the organization was not as lofty as she had hoped it would be…or believed it should be. Sarah Brady already stole her thunder, ages ago.
In short, another attention seeker puffed up with her own sense of self-importance got her come-uppance. Boo-effing-hoo.
So, what is Ranta’s beef with the FOP? A law enforcement organization that includes in its mission statement a pledge to support and defend the U. S. Constitution and to promote and foster the enforcement of law and order.
What she really hates is the U.S. Constitution, or more specifically the 2nd amendment thereof, and apparently anyone who supports it. Ranta should pack up her bags and move to a place where it’s citizen’s don’t have that right. Or she could do something to prepare to defend herself against her (ex?) husband like buy a gun (but, certainly not an evil Beretta) and get some defensive training so that she can be self sufficient. That way she wont have to call the police, who she apparently doesn’t care for.
What I think is funny is that she blames Beretta for her husband shooting her.
If it bleeds it leads is not just the mantra of the Media, Anti gun groups have been doing the same thing for years. Even when there is no blood shed, if the event has opposing sides and so much as a shoving match: they will spout off about how much worse it woud have been if guns legal or not were present! They are just vultures waiting for carnage. They are a bit selective on events and barely mention shootings and murders that take place in democratic legacy cities like Chiraq. If it wasn’t for Bloomberg money you would hardly know everytown was still kicking.