Columbine is 25. A conversation with Monisha Henley of Everytown for Gun Safety.

[00:00:00] .

[00:00:17] Welcome back to another episode of The Political Life.

[00:00:20] This is Maggie Mick, Jim O'Brien's new co-host and I'm actually taking this one solo.

[00:00:28] Once again in Connecticut we are in the final throes of legislative session and Jim is

[00:00:34] at the capitol right now.

[00:00:36] So welcome to our guest of today, Anisha Henley with Everytown for Gun Safety.

[00:00:44] When we were talking, Jim and I about a month ago, about kind of reforming or reformulating

[00:00:50] how we approach all of these episodes, we really wanted to take the headlines or

[00:00:56] take the story of the day and pull out friends and colleagues who are working on

[00:01:01] those issues and working behind those headlines.

[00:01:06] With the 25th anniversary of Columbine occurring just a couple of weeks ago, I thought what

[00:01:13] an incredible opportunity to bring Monisha on to talk about her career and the work

[00:01:18] that Everytown does and this important issue for our country.

[00:01:24] And Jim has this really strong track record of bringing on leaders in government affairs

[00:01:29] right as they're taking on a new role or going to a new company.

[00:01:34] And Monisha actually was promoted to head of government affairs, all of government affairs

[00:01:41] about a year ago, actually less than a year ago and is a long time leader at Everytown.

[00:01:48] But with her recent promotion and the timeliness of this conversation we thought

[00:01:52] what better time to bring you on to the podcast.

[00:01:54] So welcome to the political life.

[00:01:56] Thank you Maggie.

[00:01:58] It's a pleasure to be here.

[00:02:00] So when you and I were talking last week about doing this conversation, I just said

[00:02:06] I want to ask you the questions that we never find the time really to have when we're

[00:02:10] at state official conferences either running after the governor that you need to catch

[00:02:14] or a lawmaker.

[00:02:15] And so I'm just going to consider this as having eggs like a CSG or NCSL meeting

[00:02:22] and I'm going to ask you the questions that we never really have the time to have.

[00:02:27] So everyone knows you're a stalwart at Everytown and it's defined your career to date.

[00:02:34] But there's a before.

[00:02:36] You had your first job somewhere, it wasn't Everytown.

[00:02:38] So what did your career, where did it start and what did before Everytown look

[00:02:44] like for you?

[00:02:45] Sure.

[00:02:46] So I'm actually going to start at the very beginning because it definitely is how

[00:02:50] I got the political bug.

[00:02:52] My dad, when I was born, worked for then Congressman Carper before he became

[00:02:57] Governor Carper and now Senator Carper of the great state of Delaware, was working

[00:03:04] as a congressional aide.

[00:03:06] And so truly before I was walking, I was attending political events.

[00:03:11] I remember my mom taking me to vote with her when I was little.

[00:03:15] Like I used to joke and this is going to tell my age but at the dinner table

[00:03:20] we were talking about like, you know, Mike Dukakis and others running for president.

[00:03:26] And it just was always a part of my growing up of my existence, especially with my mom

[00:03:32] being an immigrant from India.

[00:03:33] She really thought the democratic process in America was so important with my dad

[00:03:38] being the first member of his family to graduate from college.

[00:03:41] He was a political science major and he just felt like this is where our family

[00:03:45] needed to be.

[00:03:46] I feel like I come from a family of activists and I kind of joke that I just

[00:03:50] joined the family business.

[00:03:52] I declared my major my second semester, my freshman year.

[00:03:57] I always knew what I was going to be studying and that helped lead me to my

[00:04:00] first job, which actually was working because we come full circle here as a

[00:04:05] staff assistant for Senator Carper, really keeping in the family.

[00:04:10] So that's how I got started.

[00:04:12] I then went on to do about six years in the U.S.

[00:04:14] Senate and when I was looking to lead, leave and make that transition, I was

[00:04:21] really thinking about nothing.

[00:04:24] I just knew I was ready to leave the Senate and I wasn't sure what it looked

[00:04:27] like outside of those walls of being a staffer.

[00:04:30] And I got really lucky that a professor of mine was like, have you

[00:04:34] thought about lobbying?

[00:04:36] And I was like, no, but let's give this a go.

[00:04:40] And I felt like I had the best lesson going to a big firm, Pricewater's

[00:04:45] Coopers, where I learned under, I think some of the best lobbyists probably in

[00:04:48] the business to really teach me what it meant to be on this side and how

[00:04:53] it meant to navigate through the government process when you're no

[00:04:56] longer sitting as a staffer.

[00:04:57] And I think sometimes it can be hard to go from staffer to lobbyist.

[00:05:01] And I felt like I had the best professors you could have to

[00:05:04] help me get, get me there.

[00:05:05] And that was when I realized that I wanted to not only continue doing this

[00:05:10] work, but doing it for stuff that I really cared about personally.

[00:05:14] And that's how I ended up getting into the gun violence prevention work.

[00:05:17] So in terms of joining the, the team at Everytown, it really is a

[00:05:25] calling when you, when you start advocating for something that you care

[00:05:29] about, so what called you to this work?

[00:05:32] As I mentioned, this is very personal for me.

[00:05:34] So I'll start with, again, growing up in Wilmington, Delaware, unfortunately,

[00:05:38] it is a city that is riddled with gun violence.

[00:05:41] And there was a point in my life where I was not allowed to go to the

[00:05:44] corner store because my dad was worried about me being in the

[00:05:47] wrong place at the wrong time.

[00:05:49] And then unfortunately, when I was in college, I was at a college

[00:05:55] party where an argument broke out over a football game and that

[00:06:01] argument made its way outside where somebody reached into their

[00:06:04] car and pulled out a firearm.

[00:06:06] And as a result, four of my classmates were injured and one

[00:06:11] of them was shot and killed.

[00:06:12] And it was, you know, this place in this time in your life where

[00:06:17] you're supposed to be having fun and learning and feeling safe,

[00:06:22] all of a sudden became very unsafe.

[00:06:24] And this is after Columbine.

[00:06:26] So in high school, I was watching this happen on TV and in college,

[00:06:31] I was experiencing it firsthand.

[00:06:34] And unfortunately, I feel like that became a trend of our generation.

[00:06:39] And that is why when the opportunity came to work for every town,

[00:06:44] I jumped at it.

[00:06:44] I was working for the American nurses association as one of their

[00:06:48] senior federal lobbyists, the Pulse nightclub shooting happened.

[00:06:51] The nurses declared gun violence, a public health epidemic.

[00:06:54] It became a part of my lobbying portfolio.

[00:06:57] And that's when I got to know some of the folks at every town and the

[00:07:00] work that they were doing.

[00:07:01] And also when I really understood that this was an issue that was

[00:07:04] going to happen state by state and like where Congress definitely plays

[00:07:07] a role in it and they needed to be taking this issue seriously,

[00:07:11] the fight was going to happen in the States.

[00:07:12] And so I was really excited for the first time ever to join state

[00:07:16] affairs and something I took for granted was I thought going from

[00:07:20] federal to state lobby would be very easy and it was way more

[00:07:24] complicated than expected.

[00:07:25] Yes.

[00:07:26] Federal government, 50 times over plus some territories.

[00:07:30] Um, I think, you know, it's, it's ironic when you talk about

[00:07:33] it really impacting our generation, you know, older millennials,

[00:07:37] border on Gen X, um, you know, a few months after Columbine,

[00:07:42] maybe that's why we're sitting here today.

[00:07:44] Um, few months after Columbine, I lost a friend to gun violence

[00:07:49] on his, um, 17th birthday at his own birthday party.

[00:07:53] He was murdered in his backyard Ross Griffin.

[00:07:57] Um, so it, and you do, you think Columbine is so physically far away

[00:08:02] and you're like, why would that happen?

[00:08:04] And it wasn't as frequent as it is now, unfortunately.

[00:08:07] Um, and then it arrives at your door.

[00:08:10] Um, so I didn't know that about, um, your, your history.

[00:08:15] So you joined every town after it was established, but in terms of just

[00:08:19] for anyone who's not super familiar with the origin story of every town.

[00:08:23] It was founded in 2014, but you know, how did it come together?

[00:08:27] Um, what, what it's, what prompted it and how did it kind of form?

[00:08:31] Sure.

[00:08:32] Um, so every town was founded 10 years ago.

[00:08:34] So we're excited to be celebrating that Mark.

[00:08:38] Um, and it really was two organizations coming together to

[00:08:42] form what is now known as every town.

[00:08:44] I do want to acknowledge that every town has been a

[00:08:46] big part of this movement.

[00:08:48] But as you just said, Maggie, and the story I share that gun violence

[00:08:52] has been in our lives for way longer than every town has been.

[00:08:56] And that there have been lots of people who have been fighting this battle

[00:08:59] before we for every time was formulated.

[00:09:02] Um, but when mayor's against illegal guns and moms to man action, the

[00:09:07] two groups that came together to make every time they had a very specific

[00:09:11] mission, and that was truly to create a counterweight to the NRA to

[00:09:16] acknowledge that the NRA had existed in this space and kind of defined

[00:09:20] what crime gun violence was, how we responded to policies and that there

[00:09:24] was no other voice to that.

[00:09:27] And so every town's mission really was to create another voice, one

[00:09:31] that was led by the grassroots, by moms, students, survivors, mayors,

[00:09:36] law enforcement, faith leaders, you name it, to really acknowledge

[00:09:39] that this is not about guns.

[00:09:42] This is about gun violence and how we can prevent it.

[00:09:45] Um, and I think the last 10 years kind of tell its own story.

[00:09:50] Uh, we went from a very small and scrappy startup to an organization

[00:09:54] that has millions of supporters, um, that people know our name and our

[00:09:59] brand and recognize that we have really built true political power in

[00:10:03] this movement from every level of government, from local to state to federal.

[00:10:10] So 10 and you're headquartered in New York, correct?

[00:10:13] And we're headquartered in New York.

[00:10:14] So just for anybody who can hear the sirens, it's such a New York sound.

[00:10:20] Um, so in terms of, you know, we talk about it being 10 years old and being

[00:10:25] at the 25 year mark for Columbine, you know, what, what has been the story

[00:10:31] to date, what are the policies that have been advanced?

[00:10:34] Um, where have we seen progress on these issues?

[00:10:39] Sure.

[00:10:39] Um, so it's really interesting to reflect on 25 years of Columbine

[00:10:45] and how different it is now.

[00:10:47] Um, when we were in high school and Columbine was happening, we watched

[00:10:51] on the news, but I don't know that at least for me, I even thought about

[00:10:55] how I could respond to it.

[00:10:57] It felt like this isolated incident that was happening in Colorado

[00:11:00] and was not my story.

[00:11:03] Even when I was in college and lost a friend to gun violence on our

[00:11:06] campus, it still didn't click that I could activate on this.

[00:11:11] And what we've really seen is post, um, Sandy Hook and then Parkland

[00:11:16] we saw the grassroots stand up and say enough is enough in a way that

[00:11:20] we just haven't seen before.

[00:11:22] And it's something that we've seen in other movements, right?

[00:11:24] We saw this with the, um, women's right to vote with civil rights.

[00:11:28] And now we're really seeing this with gun violence and in some ways

[00:11:32] women's reproductive freedom.

[00:11:34] And what would the real difference is, is like students saying

[00:11:38] that they, this is their issue.

[00:11:40] And the Sandy Hook, unfortunately students were too young, but when

[00:11:44] Parkland happened, they were on social media and they took advantage

[00:11:49] of being able to find every platform they could use to have their voices

[00:11:54] heard.

[00:11:55] And as a result, we've been able to see changes like background

[00:11:58] checks being passed in about 22 states.

[00:12:01] Um, that year we saw a real surge of something we call a red

[00:12:05] flag law or extreme risk protection orders, which is a very common

[00:12:09] which was really a tool that is about being able to make sure families

[00:12:13] and law enforcement can identify when they know a member of a loved

[00:12:18] one is at risk, could be at risk themselves or someone else.

[00:12:22] And to be able to temporarily remove a firearm, being able to make

[00:12:26] sure that that firearm is not in that situation where it could

[00:12:28] end up in a violent moment.

[00:12:30] We went from going into 2018 with nine states having ERPOs to now

[00:12:36] having 21 states having ERPOs.

[00:12:40] So just seeing these movements on these really bread and butter

[00:12:43] policies, these really baseline policies that set the foundation

[00:12:46] on how we create safer communities.

[00:12:49] And it's just grown from there.

[00:12:50] We talk about things like secure storage, like what does it mean

[00:12:53] to properly secure your firearm?

[00:12:55] This is not a new concept.

[00:12:56] This is something that hunters do every single day.

[00:13:00] They're securing their firearm properly in a safe, they're

[00:13:02] separating it from its ammunition.

[00:13:04] They know what does it mean to be a responsible gun owner.

[00:13:07] And we're just saying, we should educate everybody on that and making

[00:13:11] sure that they're properly securing their firearm.

[00:13:14] Something I also really pride ourselves on and how we approach

[00:13:17] this work is we recognize every state is different, not everybody

[00:13:21] is living in New York and that we want to really meet you where you are.

[00:13:25] So what we're talking about in Alabama is not going to be the same

[00:13:28] thing that we're talking about in Michigan and really acknowledging

[00:13:32] that this is not a one size fits all, that this is really about

[00:13:36] addressing the community needs.

[00:13:37] And so we've been doing a lot more work on domestic violence, on

[00:13:41] suicide prevention to really acknowledge the breadth of what gun violence is.

[00:13:47] So because you just mentioned both democratically controlled states

[00:13:51] and Republican controlled states, you know, bringing state officials

[00:13:56] to where they sit and where they can get, you know, what are some

[00:14:02] examples of some just like bipartisan success stories that

[00:14:05] you've seen around the country?

[00:14:06] Sure.

[00:14:07] So I actually mentioned secure storage, which is one that has been really,

[00:14:12] we've seen so many activations on it, engagements on it in very different ways.

[00:14:16] Things like in Tennessee where they were looking at tax credits for

[00:14:20] having a storage for your firearm or looking at opportunities around

[00:14:24] lost and stolen firearms, which we know is a really huge issue,

[00:14:27] especially with firearms being stolen from cars and then

[00:14:30] ending up in violent crimes.

[00:14:31] So reporting mechanisms to acknowledge when a firearm has been lost or stolen.

[00:14:35] So that law enforcement is aware that there could be a legal firearm

[00:14:39] that's now entering the illegal market, looking at things like

[00:14:42] trafficking and then just doing the basics, which is public service

[00:14:48] announcements, like doing education.

[00:14:50] You saw places like Utah and again, Tennessee really leaning into

[00:14:54] the educational piece around secure storage.

[00:14:56] So I really mean it when I say like we try to meet everybody where they are.

[00:15:01] This is not about the letter next to their name.

[00:15:03] This is about agreeing on policies that will help make our community safer.

[00:15:10] So in terms of 2024, we're kind of coming out of the heaviness

[00:15:14] of the legislative sessions or spring legislative sessions.

[00:15:18] You know, what was the story?

[00:15:20] What are the headlines coming out of this session on your work in the States?

[00:15:26] I mean, I think it is on the things that I just mentioned,

[00:15:29] which is continuing to have stronger background check laws,

[00:15:32] making sure that we are looking at domestic violence and having mechanisms

[00:15:37] to remove firearms from a domestic violence situation, which is not only

[00:15:41] good for the protection of the family that's involved, but also for

[00:15:45] protection of law enforcement, continuing to do things like passing red flag laws.

[00:15:50] And then the big piece that we've been really working on is holding

[00:15:53] the gun industry accountable, making sure that we are actually talking

[00:15:57] about the needs that the industry needs that needs to change in ways

[00:16:02] that we saw when leading cause of death was children, teens, car accidents.

[00:16:06] We saw the car industry respond to that and now it's guns.

[00:16:10] So we need the gun industry to respond to it as well.

[00:16:13] I also want to go back and just acknowledge a piece like, you know,

[00:16:16] we're talking a lot about states because that became my bread and butter,

[00:16:20] but I don't want to acknowledge my roots with the federal government

[00:16:23] and remind everybody that two years ago, we did pass a groundbreaking

[00:16:28] milestone legislation that was bipartisan with 15 Republican

[00:16:33] senators voting for it.

[00:16:35] So I really want to make sure that again, just reminding folks that like

[00:16:40] this issue should be nonpartisan.

[00:16:42] It is bipartisan and that we're really are meeting people where they are.

[00:16:48] So we're in 2024 and I think, and I don't want to

[00:16:51] misquote any numbers, but in 2022, obviously, after two years of being

[00:16:56] hybrid or remote schoolwork, we saw a dramatic increase in school shootings.

[00:17:02] It was a terrible year in terms of the safety of children.

[00:17:09] Turning towards like the public policy, you know, national focus

[00:17:13] on youth and mental health that I really do think started with COVID.

[00:17:19] We saw in 2022 all those school shootings and other just challenges

[00:17:24] that youth are facing today.

[00:17:26] You know, when you think about meeting the moment and bringing along

[00:17:30] some of your policy to those where the spotlight is, you know,

[00:17:35] in terms of your focus on youth, where do you go from here?

[00:17:39] Yeah, I mean, a big part of our work is thinking about school safety

[00:17:44] because of that glaring statistic of guns are now the leading cause

[00:17:49] of death for children and teens.

[00:17:51] And I come back to things like secure storage, because oftentimes

[00:17:55] the firearm that is used in a violent instance is one that is found at home

[00:17:59] that was accessible and not properly secured.

[00:18:02] And so just making sure that we're keeping guns out of those entities.

[00:18:08] Right? Like keeping them out of schools, making sure that states

[00:18:11] that have started a trend of arming teachers, that we're really acknowledging

[00:18:16] that is not the answer here.

[00:18:17] That we really want to make sure that we're having holistic programming,

[00:18:21] wraparound programming, threat assessment and doing all the things

[00:18:25] we can possible to actually keep guns out of these institutions.

[00:18:29] And if there is a gun in that institution, that it's by a, you know,

[00:18:33] trained licensed security official, not a teacher who is there

[00:18:36] to teach their students.

[00:18:39] And so I'm glad you brought that up because as much as we are playing

[00:18:42] offense and we've made a lot of progress, we're still playing defense.

[00:18:45] And it's our job to explain why these are not good ideas and good policy

[00:18:50] that actually they're going to create more harm than good.

[00:18:53] Yeah, I think I read a study coming out of Pugue Research last month

[00:18:57] that two thirds of teachers are at least somewhat concerned

[00:19:01] about a school shooting occurring where they teach.

[00:19:04] Yeah, and they shouldn't not have to worry about that.

[00:19:08] They should be able to be there to do what they are trained to do,

[00:19:11] which is educating the youth.

[00:19:14] And I think being able to work on policies that are going

[00:19:18] to not only benefit school safety, but also benefit our communities at large.

[00:19:24] So how do you keep it light on your team?

[00:19:27] You all have a lot of hard days.

[00:19:29] Anytime a school like a school shooting or a mass shooting occurs,

[00:19:33] I can understand that not only is there not a pause in your day,

[00:19:36] that transitions your work for the foreseeable future.

[00:19:40] So you have a large team, you have a lot of young and some older

[00:19:46] professionals that you want to be successful and have good mental

[00:19:52] health themselves.

[00:19:53] How do you all have fun?

[00:19:54] How do you keep it light when working on such tough issues?

[00:19:58] Yeah, I love this question.

[00:19:59] And I think depending on who you ask, they may give you a different answer.

[00:20:02] So I will give you my answer.

[00:20:05] I watch a lot of Bravo because I feel like no matter how chaotic

[00:20:10] my life can be, it is not as chaotic as a housewife.

[00:20:15] Being able to read a good book.

[00:20:17] I love going to the ballet and seeing shows.

[00:20:20] And I think for me, it's being able to kind of spend some time where

[00:20:24] obviously this is all a part of our realities, but spend some time

[00:20:28] where we can kind of have a little bit of distance from it.

[00:20:33] And I will say that the issue is really hard, but what makes it

[00:20:37] easier is knowing every single day I come to work and I'm hopefully

[00:20:42] making a difference, even if it's just a small difference.

[00:20:45] And for me, that's a very personal motivator.

[00:20:47] It reminds you of like what's at stake and why it's so important.

[00:20:51] And, you know, if I need to throw in a little housewives here and

[00:20:55] there, that kind of helps get me through it.

[00:20:59] So we usually like to end some of these conversations with a lightning round,

[00:21:04] like quick questions, quick answers.

[00:21:07] But on this occasion, I'm going to go through a lightning round.

[00:21:11] But instead of answering, I'd like you to think about maybe where

[00:21:16] you were on this date and ask our listeners maybe to be to think about

[00:21:20] where they were on this date and if they can remember, because I know

[00:21:23] that when it comes to mass shootings, I can probably point to every

[00:21:27] single major one and where I was and what I was doing.

[00:21:31] But again, to your point and to your team's work,

[00:21:35] it's not just a moment where you remember, it's how you transition

[00:21:38] your work to what you're doing next.

[00:21:40] So I'll go through the lightning round of moments.

[00:21:43] And then I've got one final question for you.

[00:21:45] So. Where were you on Columbine?

[00:21:49] Where were you on Aurora?

[00:21:52] Where were you on Sandy Hook?

[00:21:54] Where were you on Virginia Tech?

[00:21:57] Where were you on Parkland?

[00:21:59] Where were you on Las Vegas?

[00:22:02] Where were you on New Vailde?

[00:22:04] Where were you on Q?

[00:22:06] Where were you on Nashville?

[00:22:09] And I didn't even get to all of them.

[00:22:13] So my last question for you, and I thank you for your leadership

[00:22:16] and the fact that you came back to this work.

[00:22:20] You took a sabbatical last year and went to Etsy for about seven months

[00:22:23] and had, I'm sure, a lot of fun with all the creators and sellers.

[00:22:26] And it's just a beautiful world over there.

[00:22:29] You got called back.

[00:22:30] So I'd ask you a question two parts.

[00:22:33] One, what brought you back home?

[00:22:36] And two, what has been the best day on the job so far?

[00:22:41] Oh, what brought me back is.

[00:22:46] I wasn't finished yet, and I think I always knew that.

[00:22:50] And I felt like it was the opportunity to not only lead the team

[00:22:58] in this new approach where we're connecting our federal, state and local work,

[00:23:02] but also to be able to be a part of the thought of what is the next 10 years

[00:23:06] every time look like really felt like something that I wanted to be a part of.

[00:23:12] And so that was a big motivator for me being back here as I really felt

[00:23:16] like I had unfinished business and the opportunity was too great to turn down.

[00:23:22] And. The best day I've had.

[00:23:29] Honestly, it might have been my very first legislative win

[00:23:33] when I was a brand new state lobbyist on the every team six years ago

[00:23:40] where we were able to pass an incredible legislative package in Vermont.

[00:23:45] And it was a thing that I didn't really understand how I did it and what we were doing.

[00:23:50] But we worked with Governor Scott was an incredible partner on this work.

[00:23:55] There was incredible legislators who are helping to lead the work at the legislature.

[00:23:59] And we did a very amazing six bill package that covered everything

[00:24:02] from background checks, domestic violence, high capacity magazines

[00:24:06] and extreme risk laws.

[00:24:07] And it just really was like a moment where it's like not only.

[00:24:11] Are we doing it like, but like we can do this and we are doing it.

[00:24:18] So that was very personal.

[00:24:19] I think my organizational response is obviously Biscoff when we did

[00:24:23] that beat the 30 year log jam at Congress.

[00:24:26] But I think personally for me, it was Vermont.

[00:24:30] There's nothing better than you first and then over and over again.

[00:24:36] Well, thank you, Monisha.

[00:24:37] It's been so fun to have some eggs with you and ask you all the questions

[00:24:40] that we never get to do when we're on the road.

[00:24:43] But and I think it's a good reminder that maybe we need to make sure

[00:24:47] we have some more eggs on the road.

[00:24:51] Well, I appreciate you and I will see you soon.

[00:24:53] And thanks for our listeners for joining us for this kind of reflective conversation

[00:24:58] marking the 25th anniversary of Columbine.

[00:25:01] And we will see you next week. Thanks.