![\"Chelsea](\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/image_2022-06-06_133758989-696x464.png\" "\\"Chelsea")
The United States\u2019 men\u2019s national team wore orange armbands in support of tighter gun control during Sunday\u2019s 0-0 draw with Uruguay.<\/p>\n
It came after the team sent a\u00a0letter\u00a0to Congress calling for \u201cstronger gun laws\u201d following several mass shootings in the country in recent weeks.<\/p>\n
The\u00a0US House of Representatives\u00a0is expected to vote on gun control legislation in the coming days.<\/p>\n
US head coach Gregg Berhalter said he was \u201creally proud\u201d of his team.<\/p>\n
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\u201cIt\u2019s sometimes easy to get caught up in our little world and what we\u2019re doing and then you forget about what\u2019s happening in the outside world, but this group certainly didn\u2019t do that,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd you saw the letter and the orange armbands. And everyone\u2019s just tired, and it\u2019s good that this group is asking for action and asking people to make change, and being the change is something we\u2019ve been part of for a while now.\u201d<\/p>\n
In the letter, signed by players and staff, the team implored Congress to \u201cstand with the majority of Americans who support stronger gun laws\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs athletes who have the privilege of traveling the globe representing the greatest country in the world, we are often asked how in a place like the United States there can be such horrific gun violence\u201d the letter read.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are also asked why the representatives of the people do nothing even though most Americans want them to take action. Those of us who play professionally abroad experience none of these things in our daily lives, yet we return home to a place where mass shootings are frighteningly common and the victims are often defenceless children.\u201d<\/p>\n
It added: \u201cOur ability to affect change is limited, but yours is not.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou could vote this week to address gun violence in America, and in fact, you will be given that opportunity. In the coming days, the US House of Representatives is voting on several bills that would address this serious issue. Please vote yes on all the bills being considered.\u201d<\/p>\n
Speaking after Sunday\u2019s friendly, US defender Walker Zimmerman said: \u201cWe want to be a team that takes action and has a response, and for the guys to unanimously step up and say, no, we want to send this letter, we approve this letter, it just makes me proud to be a part of it.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it shows our growth as men, as United States citizens, as representatives of this country at that level. So I\u2019m proud of the group in the way that we are standing up for what we believe in.\u201d<\/p>\n
As part of \u201cWear Orange Weekend\u201d, players for the Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics wore\u00a0\u2018End Gun Violence\u2019 t-shirts\u00a0before game two of the NBA Finals, among a host of other teams across the US.<\/p>\n
At the French Open last week, American tennis player Coco Gauff wrote \u2018Peace \u2013 end gun violence\u2019\u00a0on a camera lens\u00a0after reaching the final at Roland Garros.<\/p>\n
According to the Gun Violence Archive, there have been at least 239 mass shootings in the US so far in 2022.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/_125288733_gettyimages-1400658232.jpg\")