Rows and rows of white bouquets arranged on the National Mall this week honor victims of gun violence.
The Gun Violence Memorial includes 40,000 silk flowers, representing the number of Americans who die from shootings every year.
Photos: 40,000 White Flowers on National Mall Honor Gun Violence Victims
The memorial was unveiled by Giffords, former Arizona congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords' anti-gun violence group. Giffords survived being shot in the head in Tucson in 2011. Six people were killed and 12 others were hurt.
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In remarks on the National Mall Wednesday morning, Giffords called for federal action on gun safety.
“We are at a crossroads. We can let the shootings continue or we can act,” she said.
The memorial was designed by Doug Landry, who designed the COVID-19 memorial installation on the National Mall last year. It is meant to serve as “a tribute to the many lives that have been lost to gun violence, a testament to the strength and courage of survivors, and a plea to our elected officials to pass universal background checks and other lifesaving gun safety legislation in the Senate,” the group Giffords said in a statement.
The Gun Violence Memorial will be up for public viewing until the afternoon of Friday, April 16.
