Group launches campaign to ban open carry of guns in Kroger stores

Indianapolis -- Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America launched a national campaign on Monday calling on Kroger Co. to prohibit the open carry of guns in its supermarkets. The gun control advocacy group was founded in response to the Sandy Hook school shooting and has partnered with billionaires Michael Bloomberg and Warren Buffett.



The Moms Demand Action campaign, which includes a petition to Kroger, follows similar actions aimed at Target, Chipotle, Sonic, Chii’s and Jack in the Box.



"We support the Second Amendment and responsible gun ownership, but ignoring incidences of gun violence in and around stores and allowing demonstrators to open carry loaded weapons through the same aisles that our children pick out their favorite cereals is unacceptable,” said Shannon Watts, founder of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America. “Given how lax the majority of states' open carry laws are, there is no way for store employees or Kroger's loyal customers to know whether these gun extremists are good guys or bad guys. That's why Moms are asking the country's largest supermarket chain, a store that we visit every week, to follow the lead of Target, Chipotle, Starbucks and many others and make a clear statement that the open carry of firearms is not welcome in its stores."