Join us for a book talk with author and activist Andy Parker, who will be speaking about his book, For Alison. This event is free and open to the public.
For Alison is a father’s account of the story that captivated America, the murder of his daughter, reporter Alison Parker, on live television, and his inspiring fight for commonsense gun laws in the aftermath.
On August 26, 2015, Emmy Award-winning, twenty-four-year-old reporter Alison Parker was murdered on live television, along with her colleague, photojournalist Adam Ward. Their interviewee was also shot, but survived. People watching at home heard the gunshots, and the gunman’s video of the murder, which he uploaded to Facebook, would spread over the internet like wildfire.
In the wake of his daughter’s murder, Andy Parker became a national advocate for commonsense gun safety legislation. The night of the murder, with his emotions still raw, he went on Fox News and vowed to do “whatever it takes” to end gun violence in America. Today he is a media go-to each time a shooting rocks the national consciousness, and has worked with a range of other crusaders, like Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and Lenny Pozner, whose son was killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School and brought suit against Alex Jones and Infowars, who claimed the shooting was staged. In For Alison, Parker shares his work as a powerhouse battling gun violence and gives a plan for commonsense gun legislation that all sides should agree on. He calls out the NRA-backed politicians blocking the legislation, shares his fight against “truthers,” who claim Alison’s murder was fabricated, and reveals what’s ahead in his fight to do whatever it takes to stop gun violence.
Parker’s story is one of great loss, but also resilience, determination, and a call to action. Senator Tim Kaine, also a fierce advocate for commonsense gun laws, contributes a moving foreword.
"This book sends a powerful and inspiring message on the importance of the fight to end gun violence. The strength Andy has shown in turning a tragedy into a force for good in order to make this country and the world a safer place should be an example for us all."
—Senator Mark Warner
Andy Parker is the father of Alison Parker, a journalist killed on live television, and a national gun reform advocate who has appeared on all major news networks—CNN, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, NBC, and Fox News—on programs such as CBS Sunday Morning, Face the Nation, Anderson Cooper 360, Hardball with Chris Matthews, The Last Word With Lawrence O’Donnell, and many more. He has written op-eds for a variety of publications, such as The Washington Post, New York Daily News, Medium, CNN.com, The Huffington Post, and Newsweek, and has been interviewed for publications ranging from The New York Times to Time magazine. Andy has worked to develop commonsense gun legislation with activists such as the Giffords organization, the Brady Campaign, Everytown for Gun Safety, and the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence. Together with his wife, Barbara, Parker runs the For Alison Foundation, which creates opportunities for children in southern Virginia to experience the arts. Previously, Parker was a Broadway actor, a politician, and the owner of an executive recruiting firm. He lives in Martinsville, VA.