Raising Kids in a Country with Gun Violence: What Actually Helps with Moms Demand Action

About this episode

The episode discusses the impact of gun violence on child safety and the importance of advocacy in addressing this public health crisis.

As a pediatrician, I spent years looking at firearm safety through a clinical lens—as a major public health crisis and a tragic statistic. But after practicing in South Florida during the Parkland shooting and becoming a mother myself, the stakes became deeply personal. My husband is an ER doctor who sees the devastating aftermath of gun violence firsthand, and as a parent, I refuse to accept that this is now the leading cause of death for American children. We cannot just treat the symptoms of this crisis in our clinics; we have to get out ahead of it, which is why I expanded my platform to advocate for change outside the exam room. Connecting with grassroots leaders like Angela Ferrell-Zabala reminds us that we don’t have to succumb to helplessness or political polarization. Real change happens in our everyday lives—like normalizing a simple question about secure firearm storage before a playdate, or supporting local legislation in our own backyards. Advocacy is a massive ecosystem, and as parents and healthcare providers, our voices carry immense weight. By breaking down political divides and working together, we can move past the noise and build a world where our children are…

People in this episode

Host: Dr. Mona Amin

Guest: Angela Ferrell-Zabala

Topics covered

• gun violence
• public health
• child safety
• advocacy
• parenting
• firearm safety

Keywords

• gun violence
• public health crisis
• child safety
• Moms Demand Action
• firearm storage
• advocacy
• Parkland shooting

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Moms Demand Action

Places: South Florida

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