Bell Campaign Organization

Victims of gun violence, convinced that their united voice can be effective in the firearms debate, launched their own national organization Tuesday with simultaneous news conferences in eight cities. They call their group the Bell Campaign and expect to open chapters in all 50 states. "We love our children more than the gun lobby loves its guns," said Mary Leigh Blek of Trabuco Canyon, a founder and western regional director of the Bell Campaign.

Using as its model Mothers Against Drunk Driving, the group that transformed drunken-driving laws across the country, a new national organization aimed at preventing gun death and injury will make its debut today at press conferences in eight cities, from Honolulu to New York.