Born: 1971, United States
Died: NA
Country most active: United States
Also known as: NA
The following is excerpted from Infinite Women founder Allison Tyra’s book The View from the Hill: Women Who Made Their Mark After 40.
Like many activists, Shannon Watts was spurred to action by tragedy. In the case of the 40-something mother of five, it was the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary shooting in the U.S. that led this former communications executive to start the grassroots organization, Moms Demand Action. What started as a Facebook group has grown to a national organization with chapters in every state in the U.S. Watts also joined the boards of Emerge America, which recruits and trains women interested in running for political office, and Promote Peace, which invests in the development, health,c and well-being of those at the center of cyclical gun violence in urban neighborhoods to reduce such occurrences. Watts, who has been called “the NRA’s worst nightmare,” published Fight Like a Mother: How a Grassroots Movement Took on the Gun Lobby and Why Women Will Change the World in 2019.