The Santa Barbara based Coalition Against Gun Violence knows how to celebrate. And, boy, do I feel blessed to have been made a part of it. Of course it never would have happened if Chris Silverstein hadn’t heard my interview on NPR and then suggested my name to chair Toni Wellen. And many thanks to Toni for not only working so hard to put on such a fantastic event, but for inviting me to be her introductory speaker.
Michael Mehas speaks to a hungry audience
I spoke to a ballroom bathed in glistening sunshine, wonderful food, and high-vibrating people at the organization’s 13th Anniversary Celebration – an elegant luncheon held this past April 19th at Santa Barbara’s fabulous Hotel Mar Monte. The Coalition against Gun Violence is a powerful grassroots organization blessed with a wealth of intelligence and determination. Patterned after the Los Angeles Women Against Gun Violence, CAGV aims its focus on eliminating gun violence locally as well as internationally.
”For Whom the Bell Tolls.” Michael rings the “Bell” in honor of
slain fifteen-year-old Nicholas Markowitz.
Goose flesh crept across my arms when I listened to Toni Wellen read an introductory letter written by future California Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson on my behalf. I felt completely humbled by the kind words she attributed to a relationship that had begun years ago when I law clerked for her at Eskin and Jackson. At the time, I also had the opportunity to work for her wonderful husband, George Eskin, who practiced criminal defense then and now presides as judge with the Santa Barbara Superior Court. They were terrific people to have worked for, and I feel blessed to have trained under their tutelage of strong ethics and a professional approach to the practice of law.
Michael Mehas and state Assemblyman Kevin de Leon
share a light moment.
After I spoke about issues that seem to have locked themselves around my life – children, violence, and love – another of my favorite politicians in the whole world, Assemblyman Pedro Nava, introduced keynote speaker, Assemblyman Kevin de Leon, from Los Angeles. Mr. de Leon, incidentally, has just become another favorite of mine. The man knows how to talk. And he knows how to inspire. And he’s about as sincere as they get. He worked hard to overcome disadvantages in his own childhood to become an overachiever in life. And now he’s working hard to effectuate important social change that could affect us all.
California Assemblyman Pedro Nava pays
tribute to Stolen Boy and its author.
Everything the politicians talked about needs major overhauling: from the failed school systems, to the violence on the streets, to inadequate food and medical care for our children. These are issues that hit our families straight on every day, and they need to be addressed, now. That’s what people like Ms. Jackson, Mr. Nava, and Mr. de Leon are out there trying to do. They’re trying to make a difference. And if we want to see any kind of serious change to the social declination we are experiencing on a daily basis, we need to get behind them. We need to get involved. And we need to be aware that organizations like the Coalition Against Gun Violence are working hard to bring people together who are trying to make this a better place to live.
