“Gun Giveback” Activists Thank Mills for Signing Gun Control Bills

Maine’s Gun Safety Coalition released a statement on Monday, celebrating the new gun control bills signed into law following the Oct. 25 Lewiston shooting, announcing a new “gun giveback” program, and begging Mainers to celebrate Gov. Janet Mills for her support of gun restrictions.

[RELATED: Janet Mills Vetoes Bump Stock Ban, Allows 72-Hour Waiting Period Bill to Become Law Without Signature…]

“Gun Safety Advocates have so much to celebrate right now, as we are two weeks into the enactment of two major pieces of gun safety legislation in Maine: expanded Background Checks and 72 hr Waiting Periods,” said the coalition.

“We have undoubtedly saved lives with the passage of these laws, and that is an extraordinary feeling!”

The email announced a “gun giveback” program to be held on June 1, which will invite Mainers to bring their firearms to local police stations across the state for disposal.

Unlike similar programs, which are usually framed as “gun buyback” initiatives, this program will not give Mainers surrendering their arms any monetary compensation.

The “gun giveback” is to be held in conjunction with at least ten local police departments, the Maine Pediatricians, and Humanium Metal, a Swedish Non-Government Organization which melts down firearms and repurposes their metal for various products, including modern art installations.

Humanium metal is a project of IM Swedish Development Partner, which describes itself as a “feminist and anti-racist civil-society organization,” which pushes “decolonization.”

Interestingly, the company claims that it transforms “illegal seized firearms from governmental weapons destruction programmes in regions affected by armed violence into non-lethal commodities for peace,” but the Maine program targets legal gun owners.

The coalition claims that Humanium Metal will use the destroyed firearms to make microphones, artwork, and jewelry.

June’s gun giveback will not be the first time the Coalition has partnered with Humanium metal.

The coalition has held two previous giveback programs, one in 2019, and another in 2022, and claims that, on each occasion, it received 500 guns and over 25,000 rounds of ammunition.

Police departments in Portland, Augusta and Bar Harbor, as well as those in Pittsfield, Ellsworth, and Skowhegan among others are participating.

People with questions were told to direct them to Chief Kilbride of the Falmouth police department, suggesting that Kilbride is particularly involved in the program.

In its announcement, the coalition told anyone desperate to surrender their guns to the government, but who does not live in one of the participating towns, to call their local police department and ask them to join the initiative.

In the same email, the group asked its supporters to reach out to thank Gov. Mills for allowing a 72-hour waiting period bill to become law, along with an expansion to background check requirements.

Under the new laws, anyone buying a gun in Maine is required to wait for 72 hours from the time of their purchase before actually receiving the firearm.

That law has angered many Second Amendment advocates, who argue that it will stop people from protecting themselves if they urgently need defensive weapons.

Mills allowed the bill to become law without her signature.

The Gun Safety Coalition hoped to be able to use the Lewiston shooting to push through more gun-control measures, but, nevertheless, wanted to express its gratitude for the measures that were allowed into law by Mills.

“While we would have like to see more done this year, the fact is that we would not have been able to get Background Checks or 72 hour Waiting Periods without Governor Mills,” said the coalition.

Mills, who supported the waiting period and expanded background checks, vetoed another bill which would have banned bump stocks, arguing that it was written in a vague manner which could have been used to ban numerous firearms used by hunters and target shooters.

While calling for praise to be sent to Mills, the coalition requested that its supporters not send her any of their criticism over her decision to veto the bump stock ban.