Web Links
A New Study Puts America’s Gun Violence Problem in All Too Clear Terms
By Steve Williams, Care2, Feb. 5, 2016
A new study that uses World Health Organization data to compare gun violence and murder rates from across a large number of developed countries throws into stark relief just how deeply worrying America’s gun violence problem might be.
Despair Over Gun Deaths Is Not an Option
The Editorial Board, New York Times, Dec. 12, 2015
“There is a raft of needed measures that could and should be enacted as national shock flows then ebbs with each new headline about a massacre. Some of the most common sense protections involve less-noticed gun deaths in the home and illegal gun dealers arming the underworld, but all deserve the attention of voters, who have the power to throw out lawmakers hiding in the pocket of the gun lobby.”
VIDEO: 2015 Vigil to End Gun Violence
Michigan Coalition to Prevent Gun Violence Dec. 9, 2015
Footage from Michigan Coalition to Prevent Gun Violence’s National Vigil to End Gun Violence held on Wednesday Dec. 9, 2015, on the steps of the State Capitol Building located in Lansing, Mich.
International Weapons Merchants and Domestic Gun Industry Thrive Off of Death
By Mark Karlin, Truthout, Dec. 9, 2015
What country is number one when it comes to exporting hundreds of billions of dollars worth of military weaponry and equipment? The United States, of course.
End the Gun Epidemic
The Editorial Board, New York Times, Dec. 4, 2015
“It is a moral outrage and national disgrace that civilians can legally purchase weapons designed to kill people with brutal speed and efficiency.”
Murder, Incorporated: Guns and the Growing Culture of Violence in the US
Henry A. Giroux, Truthout, Oct. 7, 2015
The United States government and gun lobby are indifferent to the welfare of the American people, as the drive for profits has replaced any vestige of social and moral responsibility.
Pax Christi USA official statement on the shooting massacre at Umpqua Community College in Oregon
Pax Christi USA, Oct. 2, 2015
“Every time our nation experiences a tragedy like the one that occurred in Oregon, the choice is put before us again: Life or death, blessing or curse.”
Everytown
Everytown is a movement of Americans working together to end gun violence and build safer communities. Resource provides information, statistics and strategies for action.
Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America
Much like Mothers Against Drunk Driving was created to reduce drunk driving, Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America was created to demand action from legislators, state and federal; companies; and educational institutions to establish common-sense gun reforms.
The Presbyterian Peace Fellowship
Provides downloadable, printable gun violence prevention resources
The Public Health Institute
An article entitled “Gun Violence Is ‘A Problem We Don’t Need to Have’ – The Public Health Approach.”
Huffington Post Gun Violence Page
Provides a series of informative articles on gun violence problems and prevention.
Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence
The Brady Campaign works to pass, enforce and protect sensible laws and public policy that address gun violence at the federal and state level.
Books
Enough: Our Fight to Keep America Safe from Gun Violence
by Gabrielle Giffords and Mark Kelly with Harold Jaffe
Published October 2014, Scribner, A Division of Simon and Schuster, Inc
Reducing Gun Violence in America: Informing Policy with Evidence and Analysis
Edited by Daniel W. Webster and Jon S. Vernick
Published in 2013, The John Hopkins University Press
Articles/Papers/Study Guides
How a Lack of Power and Guns Go Together
Thom Hartmann, Truthout, June 4, 2014
There has been talk about how the NRA can’t escape the influence of the more radical parts of the gun movement. But maybe their vocal and in-your-face tactics, that include bringing assault weapons into fast food restaurants, are really a symptom of larger forces, like the broken economy and disappearing middle class.
Star-Spangled Baggage: How America’s Wars Came Home With the Troops
Ann Jones, Common Dreams, April 17, 2014
Some 2.6 million men and women have been dispatched, often repeatedly, to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. According to a recent survey, nearly one-third say that their mental health is worse than it was before they left. Almost half say they give way to sudden outbursts of anger. Only 12 percent of the surveyed veterans claim they are now “better” mentally or physically than they were before they went to war.
Bill Moyers on the NRA: “The Armed Bully of American Politics”
Bill Moyers, Moyers & Company, Dec. 15 2013
Bill discusses the work of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, which has just released a moving video urging people to speak out against firearms violence.
Sheriffs Refuse to Enforce Laws on Gun Control
By Erica Goode, New York Times, Dec. 16 2013
The resistance of sheriffs in Colorado to enforcing certain gun laws is raising questions about whether tougher rules passed since Newtown have a muted effect in parts of the nation where gun ownership is common.
State Gun Laws Enacted in the Year Since Newtown
By Karen Youris et. al, New York Times, Dec. 10 2013
In the year since the school killings in Newtown, Conn., states have passed 109 gun-related bills. Of those, 70 loosened gun restrictions and 39 tightened them. This interactive graphic charts their paths.
Letter Signed by Interfaith leaders urges Congress to Pass Gun Control Laws
By Tom Roberts, National Catholic Reporter, Dec. 9 2013
A letter issued by Faiths United to Prevent Gun Violence, signed by 54 national religious leaders and organizations representing more than 80 million Americans, urges members of Congress to support the legislation sponsored by Sen. Joe Manchin and Sen. Pat Toomey that the Senate approved last year.
Inexcusable Inaction
Editorial, America Magazine, Dec. 9, 2013
One year later, the people of Newtown and the families who lost loved ones at Sandy Hook are trying to move on. The school will be razed but the nation should not raze Sandy Hook from its conscience.
How the New Ruling on Mental Health Coverage Affects us All
Karin Kamp, Moyers and Company, Nov. 29, 2013
New mental health parity rules could potentially help reduce gun violence.
Sandy Hook Promise: There Will Be Change
Bill Moyers and Michael Winship, Moyers and Company, May 3, 2013
In the wake of the Sandy Hook shooting, families in NewtownConnecticut began “The Sandy Hook Promise,” a coalition committed to sensible solutions that can help prevent gun violence.
Restoring Peace: Six Ways Nature In Our Lives Can Reduce Violence in Our World
Richard Louv, The New Nature Movement, Jan. 10, 2013
The natural world has the power to heal human hearts and prevent violence.
Bill Moyers Essay: Gun Violence
Bill Moyers Journal, June 12, 2009
Why can we talk about gun violence and not gun control?