Pallone, Students, and Advocates Call for Action to Reduce Gun Violence & Make our Schools Safe

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 5, 2018




Long Branch, N.J. – Today at Asbury Park High School, Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) met with students, administration and advocates to discuss the gun violence epidemic facing our communities every day. According to the Center for Disease Control, New Jersey had 475 firearm deaths in 2015. Just last week, 10-year old Yovanni Banos-Merino was tragically shot outside his home in Asbury Park. The discussion took place as young people throughout the country have demanded change after the tragic shooting in Parkland, FL.

“We cannot accept it as normal when a 10 year old is shot and killed outside his home,” said Pallone. “We cannot accept it as normal that students throughout New Jersey must go to school afraid.”

“I have been inspired by the millions of Americans, many of them young people, who are now calling for action to bring about common sense solutions to reduce gun violence,” said Pallone. “We cannot allow this moment to pass without enacting change and your voice is essential to ensuring that Congress does not look the other way. I want you to know that I will do everything within my power to enact legislation to combat the gun violence epidemic facing our nation.”

Congressman Pauline supports numerous common sense solutions to reduce gun violence and help keep our children safe.

They include:

· An assault weapons ban, which will ban weapons of war like the AR-15, which has been used in mass shootings in places like Las Vegas, Aurora, Newtown, & Parkland.
· Increasing penalties for “straw purchasers” who illegally purchase firearms with the intent to sell or gift them to individuals who should not have them.
· Regulating the sale of firearms at gun shows and online, requiring a background check on all purchases (currently not required by many states).
· Banning high capacity magazines.
· Regulating the online sale of ammunition, conversion kits (to turn into military-style rifles), and large capacity ammunition feeding devices.
· Allowing the CDC and other government agencies to use federal dollars to research gun violence and gun violence prevention – which the gun lobby & @GOP has blocked for more than 20 years.

Watch Powerful Video - 2 Years Since Newtown - Nearly 100 School Shootings

District 4 Coalition for Change:

Nearly 100 School Shootings since the two year anniversary of Newtown, December 14, and Congress has done nothing to protect our children.

New Moms Demand Action Video - We Can't Hide from Gun Violence

What are we doing to our kids?
Gun Violence is homegrown terrorism and we do not need to live this way.


It's up to us. District 4 Congressman Chris Smith refuses to support expanded National Universal Background Checks. District 4 overwhelmingly supports UBC. Why won't Smith do his his job and represent this community.

Call Congressman Chris Smith and insist that he support current legislation to expand safe, common sense practices that protect our children.

Smith's office will tell you rhetoric about how he has supported gun reform which dates back 20 years. The things Smith voted for in the past are no longer relevant due to changes in the laws. Don't be fooled and intimidated by his assistant, Kate's attempt to confuse you. Tell Smith you want him to support a National Standard of Expanded Universal Background Checks.

DC (202)-225-3765
Email http://chrissmith.house.gov/contact/zipauth.htm

President Obama's Weekly Address 12/14/13: Marking the One-Year Anniversary of the Tragic Shooting in Newtown, Connecticut

WASHINGTON, DC— In his weekly address, President Obama honored the memories of the 26 innocent children and educators who were taken from us a year ago in Newtown, Connecticut.

President Obama's Weekly Address 4/13/13: Sandy Hook Victim's Mother Calls for Commonsense Gun Responsibility Reforms

This week’s address is delivered by Francine Wheeler, whose six year old son, Ben, was murdered alongside nineteen other children and six educators in Newtown, Connecticut, four months ago. Now, Francine – joined by her husband David – is asking the American people to help prevent this type of tragedy from happening to more families like hers. Since that terrible day in December, thousands more Americans have died, and thousands more families have suffered the pain of losing a loved one to violence. Now that the Senate has agreed that commonsense gun safety reforms deserve a vote, they must finish the job and pass those reforms to protect our children and our communities. Now is the time for all Americans to help make this a moment of real change.

The Other 60 Percent

The following is from Congressman Rush Holt's newsletter:



Since the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School brought renewed national attention to preventing gun violence, at least 2,200 people have died by gunfire in homicides and accidental deaths, according to an analysis by the Huffington Post. Yet even this horrific figure does not fully describe the toll of gun violence. At least as many people have died by their own hands: nearly 60 percent of all gun deaths are suicides.

Mostly, the people who die by gun suicide would not have died but for their access to firearms. In fact, the urge to die by suicide is often overwhelming but brief. According to one study of people who attempted suicide but survived, more than two-thirds took action within an hour of deciding to kill themselves.

Someone who has access to a gun within that hour-long window and who uses it is very likely to die: about 85 percent of suicide attempts by firearm result in death. Other attempts by other means are much less likely to be fatal. For example, attempted drug overdoses are fatal only 2 percent of the time.

If you have a gun in your house, I urge you to take careful responsibility for ensuring that it is locked away from anyone who might use it in a suicide. And if you or someone you know ever considers suicide, please call 1-800-SUICIDE for help.

Equal Protection Under the Law

As a member of Congress, I begin each term by swearing an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States. I take this obligation very seriously and keep a copy of the Constitution in my pocket at nearly all times.

In order to uphold this oath, I recently joined more than 200 of my colleagues in urging the courts to overturn the unconstitutional Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) – a matter that, today, had its moment before the Supreme Court.

DOMA, which was passed into law in 1996, prevents the federal government from recognizing even those same-sex marriages that were lawfully performed in one of the states. The law has fractured our legal system and led to bewildering complications for same-sex spouses.

Among the many problems: DOMA may prevent a legally married woman from fully inheriting her wife’s property upon death, an issue in today’s Supreme Court case. It may prevent a legally married man from applying for citizenship on behalf of his foreign-born husband, as happened to a Princeton couple recently. It may prevent the same-sex spouses of federal employees from gaining access to health insurance.

In short, DOMA forces the federal government to choose among legal marriages, treating some as worthy and some as unworthy. And it requires federal officials to treat loving, committed couples as though they are strangers in the eyes of the law. These hurtful consequences are all the result of DOMA’s insistence upon treating some citizens as less equal than others – a clear violation, it seems to me, of the constitutional guarantee of equal protection under the law.

Sincerely,

Rush Holt
Member of Congress

President Obama's Weekly Address 3/23/13: Helping Protect Our Kids by Reducing Gun Violence

Three months after the tragic shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, President Obama says that the Senate has taken important steps forward to help protect our kids by reducing gun violence. The American people made their voices heard, and the Senate made progress to make it harder for criminals and people with serious mental illnesses to get guns, to crack down on anyone trying to funnel guns to criminals, and to reinstate and strengthen a ban on the sale of military-style assault weapons. Each of these ideas deserves a vote.

More Than 80 Every Day

The following is from Congressman Rush Holt's newsletter:

Twenty elementary school children and six adults were murdered last week at a school in Newtown, Connecticut.

Just a few months earlier, six Sikhs were murdered at their place of worship in Oak Creek, Wisconsin.

Just a few weeks before that, 12 moviegoers were murdered in Aurora, Colorado.

These unspeakable tragedies are just the tip of the iceberg. Each day, more than 80 people die by gunfire in homicides, suicides, and accidents.

We can’t just keep saying, “Our hearts ache for the victims and their families.” We have to bring gun violence under control.

In the aftermath of these horrific events, there are, as always, those who warn us against “politicizing” this tragedy by discussing gun safety. These claims are ideologically motivated, and they are profoundly wrong.

When, after a hurricane strikes, we advocate for funding to mitigate future floods, that is not “politicizing” a tragedy. When, after a terrorist attack, we advocate for better measures to prevent future deaths, that is not “politicizing” a tragedy. The notion that gun violence is somehow different, that it deserves unique immunity from serious conversation in our political dialogue, is nonsensical.

Policymakers have an obligation to respond to problems by finding solutions. The solution to gun violence is, in part, to address gun safety – as well as to address mental health care, school security, and more. Toward this end, I will soon introduce legislation to require handgun registration and to strengthen school safety, and I remain committed to improving mental health care throughout this country.

Bold, Persistent Experimentation

The artificial crisis known as the fiscal cliff remains, at this moment, unresolved. The President and Republican leadership continue to debate within the foolish framework set during last year’s debt ceiling showdown.

I remain ready to work in Washington to see that this artificial crisis is fixed. But simply fixing the fiscal cliff is not enough. Congress aims too low if it seeks only to resolve a crisis of its own making.

We must do far more. We must address unemployment, inequality, and America’s lack of a shared vision for renewing our nation’s greatness. As Franklin D. Roosevelt said in the depths of the Great Depression:

“The country needs and, unless I mistake its temper, the country demands bold, persistent experimentation. It is common sense to take a method and try it. If it fails, admit it frankly and try another. But above all, try something…

“We need enthusiasm, imagination, and the ability to face facts, even unpleasant ones, bravely. We need to correct, by drastic means if necessary, the faults in our economic system from which we now suffer.”

Beginning the 113th Congress

On January 3, 2013, I will formally take the oath of office as a member of the 113th Congress, and you are invited to join.

The event will be held at 10:30 a.m. in the Montpelier Room on the sixth floor of the James Madison Building of the Library of Congress, 101 Independence Ave. SE, Washington, D.C. Lunch will be served after the program, and guided sightseeing tours of Capitol Hill attractions will follow.

For more information or to RSVP, please call (202) 225-5801.

Sincerely,

Rush Holt
Member of Congress

Middletown Schools Superintendent Reassures Community After The Recent Tragedy in Newtown, CT

After watching the video from last night's Middletown Township Committee meeting and hearing that Middletown School Superintendent William George, yesterday had issued a statement in the wake of the horrible Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newton CT.

Seeing how I and a number of my friends, have kids still attending school here in Middletown, I was curious to see what this statement consisted of. I first found it on Middletown Patch then located it on the Middletown Board of Education's website, where it wasn't very obviously placed. According to Patch, it was issued around 12pm.

I'm wondering why a copy of this announcement wasn't sent home with the students?




Dear School Community,

In the wake of the tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut this past Friday, I feel it is important to inform you of the steps taken by our school district to keep our students safe and mitigate theemotional impact of this horrific act.

Our central office administration has been in constant communication with our building level principals to review our safety plans, procedures and protocols.

Our safety plan was developed in consultation with the Middletown Township PoliceDepartment and the Office of Emergency Management based on recommendations from the Department of Homeland Security.

This past weekend, we communicated with our local police to discuss the details of our plan as they relate to this incident. It is important to note there will be increased police presence in our district to assist us in reviewing our procedures.

Administrative meetings are scheduled this week to continue this review.

The feedback we have received from parents, staff, students and the community will help us reflect and improve upon our current plan.

Our staff has been briefed on strategies to respond to students and will not initiate discussion regarding this event.

Students’ knowledge of the incident, as well as their emotional reactions will vary; therefore, our staff will take all concerns seriously and offer reassurance that the adultsin our schools care deeply about their safety and that their school is safe. We have counselors available at all school levels, trained and prepared to assist our students should they need further support.

Our thoughts and prayers are with the entire community of Newtown during this most difficulttime. Additional resources for families are available on our website.

Sincerely,

William O. George III, Ed.D.

Superintendent of Schools

President Obama's Weekly Address 12/15/12: Nation Grieves for Those Killed in Tragic Shooting in Newtown, CT

The President says the nation’s thoughts and prayers are with those who lost a loved one during Friday’s tragic shooting in Newtown, CT.