David Gunn (doctor)
David Gunn (1946 – March 10, 1993) was an American physician. He received his bachelors degree from Vanderbilt University and earned his M.D. at the University of Kentucky. Gunn moved to Brewton, Alabama, after his residency, choosing to provide OB/GYN and abortion services in rural America.
Gunn was murdered in Pensacola, Florida by anti-abortionist Michael F. Griffin,[1][2][3] described by the New York Times as: "A fundamentalist Christian and a loner with a bad temper."[4] Griffin originally claimed to be acting "for God"; his attorneys would later assert on his behalf that he had been brainwashed by another anti-abortion activist, John Burt.[5]
From October 1998 through May 2009, Gunn was first of a total of four doctors murdered by killers proclaiming pro-life motivation. The others were doctors Barnett Slepian, John Britton and George Tiller. Gunn's murder helped lead to the passage of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act.[4] Gunn's death also prompted Paul Jennings Hill to issue the First Defensive Action Statement, signed by 30 anti-abortion leaders, which justifies the killing of abortionists to protect unborn children.[6]
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In popular culture [edit]
In 1994, Gunn's violent death inspired the first official single "Get Your Gunn" by alternative metal band Marilyn Manson. The lead singer, Marilyn Manson, explained in a 1999 Rolling Stone op-ed piece on the Columbine High School Massacre, that to him, Gunn's murder by "pro-life" activists was the ultimate hypocrisy he had witnessed as a young adult.[7]
See also [edit]
References [edit]
- ^ 2 abortion crusaders meet - and 1 is dead, Chicago Tribune, March 19, 1993
- ^ Washington Post
- ^ Kushner, Harvey (2003). Encyclopedia of Terrorism. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan: SAGE Publications. p. 154. ISBN 978-0-7619-2408-1. Retrieved 14 February 2010. "In 1993... Griffin became the first activist to murder an abortion provider, ushering in a new level of terrorism in the abortion wars."
- ^ a b The Clinic Gunman and the Victim: Abortion Fight Reflected in 2 Lives, by Sara Rimer, NY Times, March 14, 1993
- ^ Rohter, Larry (March 5, 1994). "Towering Over the Abortion Foe's Trial: His Leader". The New York Times. Retrieved May 1, 2010.
- ^ http://www.armyofgod.com/defense.html
- ^ Marilyn Manson (1999-05-28). "Columbine: Whose Fault Is It?". Rolling Stone (op-ed essay) (Wenner Media LLC) (815).
External links [edit]
- Bio written by David Gunn's son
- First Assassination of Abortion Provider: 12 Years Ago This Month
- The History Channel's "This Day in History: March 10, 1993"
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- 1993 deaths
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- American murder victims
- American physicians
- Anti-abortion violence in the United States
- Assassinated American people
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- People from Pensacola, Florida
- People murdered in Florida
- Victims of religiously motivated violence in the United States
- 1946 births
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