‘Stand and Fight’ is Theme of NRA and its Opponents As Convention Arrives in Houston

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Video: KHOU 11 News

(Dan Freedman, Houston Chronicle)
The National Rifle Association opens its annual convention Friday in gun-friendly Houston, fresh off its success last month in blocking a congressional bid to expand background checks for firearms purchases.

For the NRA’s leader­ship, however, the three days of meetings, banquets and exhibits at the George R. Brown Convention Center will be anything but a victory celebration.

“The NRA doesn’t do pep rallies,” said Andrew Arulan­andam, the NRA’s director of public affairs. “We’re engaged in a long battle that will take years. We know it’s not over.”

The nation’s premier gun-rights organization, with nearly 5 million members, expects more than 70,000 to attend the convention. (Read more of this story at Chron.com)

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An alliance of gun-control groups and advocates is planning to press its case at the gun world’s ground zero: The annual National Rifle Association meeting at the George R. Brown Convention Center in downtown Houston.

Moms-demand-action-logoAs 70,000-plus NRA members and convention attendees peruse displays of firearms, hunting apparel and gun paraphernalia, protesters organized by the Occupy the NRA movement will read the names of 4,000 victims of gun violence since last December’s Newtown mass-shootings, in which 20 children and six adults died. The readings start early Friday in Discovery Green across from the convention center and will continue virtually non-stop through two days and nights until the meeting ends on Sunday.

Also Friday, the Houston chapter of Moms Demand Action will kick off what it terms a “Signatures for Shame” event in front of the Memorial-area office of Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas. The group intends to gather signatures on two placards with photos of all the senators who voted to block a compromise background-check bill introduced by Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Pat Toomey, R-Penn.

On a conference call with reporters Thursday, gun-control activists said their goal is to reframe the powerful NRA as a front for the firearms industry. (Read more of this story at Chron.com)

MORE COVERAGE OF THIS STORY:
• NRA President at Houston convention: We’re stronger than we’ve ever been (KTRK 13 News)
• Stand and Fight: NRA Convention comes to Houston (KPRC 2 News)
• The NRA talks gun control (KRIV 26 News)
• Five Things You Are Sure To See At The NRA Convention In Houston (KUHF Public Radio)
• NRA gathering proves a big draw amid gun-control debate (USA Today)
• Perry defends position on bill to impose background checks for gun buyers (KTRK 13 News)

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