School Violence Summit

Bush Summit To Discuss Solutions For School Violence
— Great opportunity for GOA to show politicos facts, not emotions

After three fatal school shootings in a week, President Bush has told Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and Education Secretary Margaret Spellings to come up with solutions to addressing the problem in our nation’s schools. Specifically, the meetings — which begin this week — will host educators and law-enforcement officials from around the country.

They are charged with reviewing security procedures around our nation’s schools to help prevent campus-based violence.

GOA has a great opportunity to show the President and others how to stop gun violence on school grounds. Of course, it’s inevitable that the gun issue is going to come up. The media is already clamoring for that.

“There is a link in these killings,” opined The Charlotte Observer. “A gun was used.” So, we need more gun control, the paper’s editors say.

The Charlotte Observer is not alone. And that’s why it is important that the gun owning community present evidence showing how we can make our schools safer. As GOA pointed out last week:

1. No amount of gun control would have stopped Charles Carl Roberts from acquiring guns to commit his atrocity. Roberts had a clean record and would have passed any and every background check.

2. The so-called “gun free school zones” have to go. Such disarmament zones never stop bad guys from taking guns into a restricted area. In fact, statistics show that the jurisdictions that ban guns tend to be the same areas with the highest murder or crime rates (Washington, D.C., England, etc.).

3. The only school shootings that have been stopped prematurely were ended because law-abiding citizens had guns — such as in Pearl Mississippi (1997) and at the Appalachian School of Law (2002), where faculty and responsible adults were able to bring their own defensive firearms to bear. This is an idea that Americans support, as 85% of the American public find it appropriate for a principal or teacher to use “a gun at school to defend the lives of students” in stopping a school massacre (Research 2000 Poll).

To this end, Wisconsin state representative, Frank Lasee, will be introducing legislation to allow teachers or principals to defend students with guns. GOA has already appeared on MSNBC and other media outlets to plug Lasee’s bill.

This summit is a great opportunity to invite groups like GOA to present the facts above and give concrete solutions for how to combat school violence in our nation’s schools.

ACTION: Because the subject of gun control is destined to arise at the summit this week, please urge President Bush and Education Secretary Margaret Spellings to invite gun groups like GOA and the NRA to present the real facts regarding gun ownership in this country. They need to see that arming teachers and principals is a solution that works and is supported by 85% of the American public.

You can visit the Gun Owners Legislative Action Center to send Bush and Spellings a pre-written e-mail message. You can also reach them at:

PRESIDENT BUSH
Comments: 202-456-1111
Switchboard: 202-456-1414
FAX: 202-456-2461
E-Mail: [email protected]

SECRETARY SPELLINGS
Phone: 202-401-3000
FAX: 202-401-0596

E-Mail:         [email protected]

—–Pre-written letter—–

Dear

I hope that you will strongly consider giving groups like Gun Owners of America a seat at the table when the school violence summit commences this week. Because the subject of gun control is destined to arise at this summit, gun groups will be able to present the real facts regarding gun ownership in this country — facts such as the following:

First, banning guns in school zones has failed. Criminals don’t obey the laws and will always manage to get firearms. Putting a “gun free zone” sign on the front of a school only emboldens criminals who love disarmed victims.

Second, the only school shootings that have been stopped prematurely were ended because law-abiding citizens had guns — such as in Pearl Mississippi (1997) and at the Appalachian School of Law (2002), where faculty and responsible adults were able to bring their own defensive firearms to bear.

Third, at least one legislator has already stepped forward to allow teachers and principals to use guns in self-defense. This is an idea that Americans support, as 85% of the American public find it appropriate for a principal or teacher to use “a gun at school to defend the lives of students” in stopping a school massacre (Research 2000 Poll).

I also hope you will do everything in your power to urge Congress to repeal the ineffective Gun Free School Zones law. Thank you.

Sincerely,

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