Fight Like a Mother by Shannon Watts

Fight Like a Mother by Shannon Watts

Shannon Watts was a stay-at-home mom folding laundry when news of the tragic shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary flashed across the television screen. In one moment, she went from outraged to engaged and decided to do something about it. What started as a simple Facebook group to connect with other frustrated parents grew into Moms Demand Action, a national movement with millions of supporters and a powerful grassroots network of local chapters in all 50 states. Shannon has been called "the NRA's worst nightmare"--and her army of moms have bravely gone up against the gun lobby, showing up in their signature red shirts, blocking the hallways of congress with their strollers, electing gun sense candidates and running for office themselves, proving that if the 80 million moms in this country come together, they can put an end to gun violence.

Fight Like a Mother is the incredible account how one mother's cry for change became the driving force behind gun safety progress. Along with stories of perseverance, courage, and compassion, Watts shines a light on the unique power of women--starting with what they have, leading with their maternal strengths, and doubling down instead of backing down. While not everyone can be on the front lines lobbying congress, every mom is already a multi-tasking organizer, and Shannon explains how to go from amateur activist to having a real impact in your community and beyond. Fight Like a Mother will inspire everyone--mothers and fathers, students and teachers, lawmakers, and anyone motivated to enact change--to get to work transforming hearts and minds, and passing laws that save lives.

This part manifesto, part manual for social change reveals how to:

• From Outrage to Action: Learn how Shannon Watts went from a stay-at-home mom devastated by the Sandy Hook news to the founder of a national movement in a single afternoon.
• Social Media Activism: Discover the blueprint for turning a single Facebook page into a grassroots army, proving you don't need a D.C. office to have a national impact.
• A Playbook for Change: Master the tactics that made Moms Demand Action the NRA's "worst nightmare," from organizing locally to showing up in red shirts and making your voice heard.
• Women's Empowerment: Harness the unique maternal strengths every parent already has--organizing, multitasking, and doubling down instead of backing down--to create lasting social change.

SHANNON WATTS is the founder of Mom's Demand Action for Gun Sense in America--the leading force for gun violence prevention, with chapters in all 50 states and a powerful grassroots network of moms that has successfully effected change at the local, state and national level. In 2013, MDA partnered with Mayors Against Illegal Guns to form Everytown for Gun Safety, nationwide movement of millions of Americans working together to end the epidemic of gun violence. She is an active board member of Emerge America and Rise to Run, two of the nation's leading organizations for recruiting and training women to run for office. Watts is a contributor to The Huffington Post, and Medium. Her writing has appeared in Vogue, Time, The Washington Post, and others. She is a mother of five.