Woman urges
isle moms to march
for gun control
A Mililani woman is
By Lori Tighe
seeking volunteers from
Hawaii for a vigil in D.C.
Star-BulletinAs moms across the country began organizing the Million Mom March for tighter gun control, an ailing grandmother agreed to take up the call here.
Bev Kai, on disability, has chronic fatigue syndrome. She becomes ill easily, feels weak and sleeps 16 to 18 hours a day. But she is even more sick of the killing in this country. From Columbine High School to the Xerox slayings, the killings must stop, she said.
So when asked to coordinate Hawaii's moms for the Washington, D.C., march on Mother's Day, she said yes.
"This is going to continue unless we make an effort to stop it," she said. "I felt something needed to be done. They wanted me to do it, so I'm doing it."
The mothers hope to pressure Congress to pass what they call "common sense" gun laws, including safety locks for all handguns, cooling-off periods and background checks, licensing handgun owners, registering all handguns and no-nonsense enforcement of current gun laws.
All mothers, future moms, stepmothers, foster mothers and honorary moms (men) are invited to fill the mall before the Capitol on Mother's Day to either congratulate or castigate Congress for how it voted on gun control.
As of mid-November, 3,000 people from 40 states had signed up to march.
Interest is budding in Hawaii, Kai said.
A few women from Schofield Barracks said they're interested, and members of the new Hawaii chapter of the Bell Campaign offered to help. The Bell Campaign is similar to Mothers Against Drunk Driving but focuses on firearm violence prevention.
Kai grew up during the Cold War in San Francisco and became a pacifist during Vietnam. She married her high school sweetheart, who became a second lieutenant in the Air Force.
"My husband bombed Hanoi on Christmas. I was sick of the killing and the death. It affected my mind, heart and feelings," she said.
Then her friends in California lost a 20-year-old daughter who was kidnapped, raped and murdered in 1971.
The Million Mom March was born on Labor Day after a mother, Donna Thomases, saw TV footage of toddlers leaving a Jewish community center in California after a white supremacist started shooting in August.
They developed a slogan, "We're looking for a few good moms"; a Web site: millionmommarch.com, and a toll-free number, 1-888-989-MOMS.
Then Anna Quindlen wrote a Last Word column in the Nov. 1 Newsweek on the march, which caught Kai's eye. She wrote an e-mail to the Web site applauding the mothers' efforts and was recruited to coordinate Hawaii.
Helping her distribute fliers "like Johnny Appleseed" is Nadine Onodera, a founder of the Hawaii Bell Campaign.
Her 24-year-old son, Michael, was murdered in their Hawaii Kai home on Dec. 9, 1993, a night she has thought about every day since, and will for the rest of her life.
"People say gun control laws are inconvenient. It's much less convenient than burying my son," Onodera said, "that was inconvenient."
The Bell Campaign is supporting the ammunition bill before Hawaii's Legislature this year. Proof of gun ownership would be required before buying ammunition to help prevent the use of stolen and black market guns.
Gov. Ben Cayetano wrote a personal letter to Kai endorsing the Million Mom March. He said the Xerox tragedy is causing many people to re-examine Hawaii's firearms laws.
For more information, call Kai at 949-7380, or Onodera at 235-4222.
