Spring 2024 Barbara Boxer Fellow
Shannon Watts is the founder of Moms Demand Action, the nation’s largest grassroots group fighting against gun violence. With nearly 10 million supporters and a chapter in every state, Moms Demand Action volunteers have stopped the NRA’s priority legislation in statehouses roughly 90 percent of the time every year for the past decade; passed over 500 gun safety laws across the country; changed corporate policies; educated millions of Americans about secure gun storage; and elected hundreds of volunteers to office. In 2022, the grassroots movement helped break through the logjam in Congress and pass the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, the first federal gun safety bill in 26 years.
Watts is an active board member of Emerge America, one of the nation’s leading organizations for recruiting and training women to run for office. Her book, Fight Like a Mother: How a Grassroots Movement Took on the Gun Lobby and Why Women Will Change the World, was released in May of 2019.
Prior to her work at Moms Demand Action, Watts built a career as a communications executive at companies including FleishmanHillard, Monsanto, GE Healthcare, and WellPoint. She is a graduate of the University of Missouri and currently lives in the Bay Area of California with her husband.
Study Group: Building a Movement to End Gun Violence and Enact Social Change
This study group explained in detail how to build a sustainable, effective grassroots movement that can take on powerful special interests, and how people can take those learnings to build or bolster social change in their own communities. Through this study group, Shannon brought together some of the most vital voices in American activism and used her own journey in activism to educate others about how they can organize to create cultural, legislative, and electoral change.
Spring 2024 Semester Recap
USC students in Shannon’s study group shared this about their experience:
“I found a space where I could learn from true experts in politics. I met new friends, challenged my own beliefs and opinions, and learned so much. I couldn’t recommend this to others more!”
“I gained a stronger voice for speaking on difficult issues like gun violence in the United States. My favorite part of being in this study group was having the space to share my experience and hear from others.”
“I learned so much about organizing, advocacy, and civil rights in this study group. I loved being a part of a cohort with others who are passionate about current issues in government. This has been the experience of a lifetime, and I’m excited to take what I’ve learned into my future political or legal career.”
Allie Wang, Law, History, and Culture
Shannon shared her thoughts on the importance of politics, her first political experience, her advice for having respectful political discourse, and what she appreciates about CPF in her “Quick Takes: Q&A with CPF Fellow Shannon Watts” video.