'Mommy, did kids get shot?' Julianne Moore recalls heart-breaking moment her daughter asked about the Sandy Hook shooting - as she launches new gun safety campaign
- The actress, 54, was decorating the Christmas tree with her then-10-year-old daughter Liv when she asked about the Sandy Hook Massacre
- Learning about the shooting made the star feel like she 'had to do something' about gun violence
- She has now launched the Everytown Creative Council in conjunction with gun violence prevention organization Everytown for Gun Safety
- So far, 79 celebrities have joined the campaign, including Reese Witherspoon, Kevin Bacon, Alec Baldwin, Amy Schumer and more
Actress Julianne Moore has launched a new campaign against gun violence after horror of the Sandy Hook massacre left her feeling like she had 'to do something'.
The 54-year-old actress was one of the millions of parents affected by the December 2012 shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, perpetrated by 20-year-old Adam Lanza, that saw 20 children and six adults lose their lives. But it was the words of her daughter Liv, now 13, that made her feel the need to get involved.
'I remember my daughter came to work with me that day. I was doing a movie in Queens and when we got into the van, I actually said to the driver, "Turn the radio off,"' the actress told People. 'She was young so the whole day, I kept the TV and the radio off.'
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Speaking out: Actress Julianne Moore, 54, is launching a new campaign against gun violence after being spurred on following the 2012 Sandy Hook shooting
Call to action: Julianne recalled that, despite her efforts to shield her daughter Liv (L) from the news about the massacre, the then-ten-year-old still heard about it, asking, 'mommy, did some kids get shot?'
But later on that night, the mother and daughter were decorating the Christmas tree when Liv asked her: 'Mommy, did some kids get shot?'
Julianne then turned to her husband Bart Freundlich, 45, with whom she also has a 17-year-old son Caleb, and said: 'I've got to do something. This is the one thing that I need to say something about. This is my responsibility as a parent.'
Now, the Freeheld star is pairing up with America's largest gun violence prevention organization, Everytown for Gun Safety - as well as dozens of other celebrities - to form the Everytown Creative Council, which sees members of the creative community coming together to support the prevention of gun violence.
Horror: The shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, on December 14, 2012, saw 20 children and six adults lose their lives
For the kids: After hearing the news, Julianne turned to her husband Bart Freundlich (pictured second from right next to the couple's son Caleb, 17) and said, 'I've got to do something'
Teaming up: Julianne has now teamed up with America's largest gun violence prevention organization, Everytown for Gun Safety, to form the Everytown Creative Council
The council's call to action reads: 'We believe there are many common sense steps we can – and must – take right now to help save American lives from gun violence.'
The steps outlined on the website include keeping guns out of the hands of convicted criminals, domestic abusers, terrorists and those who have mental illnesses, as well as ensuring safe storage for weapons - specifically keeping them unloaded and out of the reach of children.
The council also encourages citizens who support the prevention of gun violence to lobby for change within their own communities.
While the actress says she believes in the second amendment, she claims that belief and a belief in gun safety are 'not mutually exclusive'.
Joining in: Julianne's council now boasts 79 celebrity members, including Amy Schumer (L) and Alec Baldwin (R), all of whom believe that there are steps that can be taken to prevent gun violence
Another big name: Ellen DeGeneres (R) is another name on the roster for the council, which aims to encourage background checks and safe gun storage
Big guns: Julianne gained support from the likes of Reese Witherspoon (L) and Kevin Bacon (R) by going through her address book and was thrilled to find that 'everybody feels this way about this issue'
Since more than 90 per cent of people in America are in support of background checks, she adds that she and her fellow members do not feel that they are in the minority.
'For cars, you have to have training and you have to have a license, and you wear seat belts and we have airbags and we have all of these things in place that have reduced fatalities unbelievably,' she says.
'And it was a totally unregulated industry at first. I feel like something that is very sensible and straight forward can be done also with guns.'
So far, the actress has been joined on the council by 79 other celebrities, including fellow film stars Reese Witherspoon, Kevin Bacon, Alec Baldwin, Amy Schumer and TV host Ellen Degeneres.
And that list is growing, according to Julianne, who says she simply went through her address book to gain support, adding she found that: 'Everybody feels this way about this issue'.
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