Mayors Against Illegal Guns Membership Skyrockets After Newtown Shooting

Anti-Illegal Gun Group Membership Skyrockets After Tragedy
NEW YORK, NY - DECEMBER 13: New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg speaks to the media during a ribbon-cutting ceremony to open a new soccer field on Brooklyn's Pier 5 on December 13, 2012 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images for New York Red Bulls)
NEW YORK, NY - DECEMBER 13: New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg speaks to the media during a ribbon-cutting ceremony to open a new soccer field on Brooklyn's Pier 5 on December 13, 2012 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images for New York Red Bulls)

More than 400,000 new members have joined the Mayors Against Illegal Guns group since last month's tragic shooting in Newtown, Conn., the coalition's communications director told Politico on Thursday.

Politico also reports that over 900,000 individuals have signed the group's 'Demand A Plan' petition, which calls on President Obama and Congress to outline a specific course of action to end gun violence.

The group, which grew out of an initial meeting of 15 municipal leaders organized by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, claims more than 800 mayors from across the country as members.

"We support the Second Amendment and the rights of citizens to own guns," reads the coalition's mission statement. "But what binds us together is a determination to fight crime, and a belief that we can do more to stop criminals from getting guns while also protecting the rights of citizens to freely own them."

News of the spike in support for the anti-illegal guns group came soon after the National Rifle Association announced that its own member ranks had grown by 100,000 since the Dec. 14 massacre in Newtown. According to Fox News, the NRA averaged about 8,000 new members per day in the week after the shooting.

Both the NRA and Mayors Against Illegal Guns met with Vice President Joe Biden this week. Biden is set to announce his recommendations for gun control legislation on Tuesday.

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