
Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence Celebrates 2009 Student Voices Contest Winners

Advocacy Spotlight

News
Community Spotlight
Research

-
Brady Center Report: Guns and Hate: A Lethal Combination.
The report points to a series of recent hate shootings by violent extremists who exploited loopholes in the nation’s gun laws, including:
* The shooting death of Officer Stephen Johns by a white supremacist at the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., on June 10, 2009;
* The shooting death of one soldier and wounding of another at a military recruiting station in Little Rock, Arkansas, at the hands of a Muslim extremist on June 1, 2009;
* The shooting deaths of three Pittsburgh police officers at the hands of a white supremacist armed with an AK-47 on April 4, 2009.
Read more >>
(Freedom States Alliance is proud to post selections from the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence’s 14th Annual Student Voices Contest).

“We congratulate and honor all of our student winners for using their talents and voices in speaking out about gun violence. In yet another grisly year of violence that plagues too many of our students, it is truly inspiring to see the immense creativity, thoughtfulness and passion from our young people who care deeply about making our communities safer,” said Thom Mannard, Executive Director of Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence.
“We are grateful for all of the schools that participated in this year’s student contest, and are thankful to the principals, teachers, parents and especially our incredible students who helped make this event a success.”
All 17 winners received a new computer and a $25 gift certificate to a local bookstore.
See complete list of contest winners below.



Read more >>
(We are pleased to post the following press release from our Freedom States Alliance affiliate, the Ohio Coalition Against Gun Violence).

For Immediate Release
Contact: Toby Hoover, ocagv@yahoo.com
Ohio Coalition Against Gun Violence Calls On Religious Leaders To Speak Out Over Gun Lobby’s Immoral Agenda
(Toledo, OH, June 29, 2009) – The Ohio Coalition Against Gun Violence released the following statement in response to the Northwest Baptist Church’s gun rally in Toledo, OH scheduled for Monday night, June 29. The Northwest Baptist Church is falsely claiming that the Bible and Jesus Christ support Christians arming themselves with deadly firearms.
Toby Hoover, the Executive Director of the Ohio Coalition Against Gun Violence said in response:
“It is an embarrassment to people of faith that pray for peace and non-violence to have gun proponents use a house of worship to encourage the ownership and defend the use of weapons.
“Firearms are not sacred relics of worship. They are tools of violence- lethal products designed to kill and injure human beings, to destroy lives, and cause terror in our communities.
“Guns allow a person to decide who lives and who dies. It is absolutely immoral to suggest that the Bible supports violence. We need to reduce gun violence, not use fear to divide and distract us to the suffering caused by our gun culture.
“The gun lobby and gun industry like to disguise their radical and extremist agenda by hiding behind the flag, and now the Bible. People’s lives and safety should matter more than a radical and violent ideology purported by the gun lobby.
“The Northwest Baptist Church’s gun rally is an insult to all faiths, religions, and the human community to which we all belong. We call on all members of the faith community to speak out about this dangerous agenda. It is absolutely vital that we not allow the gun lobby to hijack our sacred spaces of worship as they have done to our public places. Our families and children are less safe because of the proliferation of deadly and loaded guns being carried in public, both openly and concealed.
“We need to honor our values by reducing the access to these tools of violence and not promote weapons and fear if we are ever to reclaim a peaceful and just society. “
For more information visit www.ohioceasefire.org
Read more >>