It's Been Three Years Since The Shooting That Nearly Killed Gabby Giffords, And She's Going Skydiving To Mark Her Progress
On Wednesday, Giffords published an op-ed in The New York Times, in which she revealed that she can move her right arm. Giffords also told the "Today" show that she is marking the occasion by going skydiving with a Navy SEAL.
It's the first time since the shooting that she will skydive, an activity she used to do all the time before the incident.
In the Times, Giffords wrote that she sees a parallel between her progress and the progress toward new gun safety laws:
Our fight is a lot more like my rehab. Every day, we must wake up resolved and determined. We'll pay attention to the details; look for opportunities for progress, even when the pace is slow. Some progress may seem small, and we might wonder if the impact is enough, when the need is so urgent. [...]
We will seize on consensus where it exists, on solutions big or small. We will fight for every inch, because that means saving lives. I've seen grit overcome paralysis. My resolution today is that Congress achieve the same. How? Step by step: Enhance enforcement by passing a law making gun trafficking a serious crime with stiff penalties. Make it illegal for all stalkers and all domestic abusers to buy guns. Extend mental health resources into schools and communities, so the dangerously mentally ill find it easier to receive treatment than to buy firearms. And even as we lay the groundwork for expanding background checks, pass strong incentives for states to ensure the background-check system contains the records of the most dangerous and violent among us.
On the second anniversary of the shooting last year, Giffords and her husband, Mark Kelly announced the formation of the gun-control group "Americans for Responsible Solutions." They formed the group in response to the elementary-school shooting in Newtown, Conn., in December 2012.
You can read Giffords' full NYT op-ed here.