http://societypolitics.chickclick.com/articles/14351.html
Packing Heat
by Leena Pendharkar
On March 29, 1994, Mary
Leigh Blek's life was
forever changed.
That day, a New York
police detective called her
Southern California home
to tell her the horrible
news: her 21-year-old son,
Matthew, had been shot
and killed by three
15-year-old kids as they
attempted to rob him.
Blek said her son did not resist the robbers, but they shot him
anyway with a Saturday Night Special, a very small, cheap gun
that's easily concealable.
Though Blek was grief-stricken by
her tragedy, she turned her pain
into activism.
She is now the President of the
Million Mom March, a national
organization that fights for stricter
gun laws. In May, the group held
a 750,000-person rally in
Washington, D.C., to call for more
sensible gun control legislation.
The march also emphasized an important fact: that women
overwhelming support stricter gun control laws and are turning
their concern about gun violence into action— forcing Democrat
Al Gore and Republican George Bush to take notice.
"Many more women, especially suburban women, are vocalizing
their views about gun control," said Nancy Hwa of Handgun
Control, a gun control advocacy organization. "These women
represent a huge voting block, and both presidential candidates
know that."
The lowdown
Gun control has been a complicated social and political issue
because the Constitution guarantees every American the right to
bear arms.
But the problem is that there is currently no national system for
tracking the sale and use of guns.
Eighty-nine percent of American women believe that guns
should be registered, compared to 82 percent of men, according
to the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research, an
independent research institute.
Why do women care?
Women have taken a stand on this issue for a number of
reasons, but most importantly because guns affect their kids.
Although school violence on the
whole has declined in recent
years, the rate of firearm deaths
to children 14 and under is 12
times greater in the U.S. than the
average of 25 other high-income
countries.
And between 1985 and 1994,
the risk of dying from a firearm
injury has more than doubled for
teenagers 15 to 19 years of age,
according to the Centers for
Disease Control.
"Women have always been nurturers—they are inclusive and
want to protect their families," Blek said.
As a result, 40 Million Mom March chapters have popped up
across the country.
Some women like guns
But despite these trends, organizations like the National Rifle
Association (NRA) and Women Against Gun Control say that
every American should be able to own a gun without strict
regulatory standards.
Trish Gregory, a spokesperson for the NRA and Janalee Tobias,
president and founder of Women Against Gun Control said
women should be able to own guns for safety reasons.
"A lot more women have recently
called to join the NRA—they feel like
they are losing their right to self
defense. Many women live in places
where they need protection," Gregory
said.
Tobias agreed.
"Women should oppose gun control
because they are the ones who are
often victims of violent crime," she
said. "The single greatest way for a
woman to protect herself is with a
gun."
Currently, women use guns to protect
themselves from rape 200,000 times
per year, and 76 percent of violent
crime does not involve firearms,
according the NRA.
Plus, Gregory pointed out that many
gun control laws are already on the
books.
She said that in the Columbine shooting, more than 20 gun laws
were violated by the killers.
But she agreed that women are more sensitive to safety issues
when it comes to gun control—and should be.
"Many women who got involved in the Million Mom March have
the same feelings as the NRA—no one does more to prevent
accidents and promote safe gun use than the NRA," she said.
Gregory said that ultimately, education, not legislation, is what
will prevent accidents.
And Tobias said she is opposed to a gun registry because it
ultimately hurts law-abiding citizens.
"Criminals are not going to register a gun, so why should we
punish people who follow the rules with a fee? Ultimately,
registration will lead to confiscation," Tobias said.
What do Al and George say?
Despite their arguments, gun violence is a serious national
problem.
And Gore and Bush have very different ways of tackling it.
Bush wants to focus more on
enforcing gun law enforcement
programs than controlling gun
ownership.
Gore wants to require photos for
registration and to limit gun purchases to one per month. He
would veto legislation that shields gun manufacturers from
lawsuits.
But until something is done, some women, especially Blek, won't
stop fighting.
Though the three teenagers who killed her son are behind bars,
she will continue to fight this battle, she said, so she can help
save someone else's child.
Leena Pendharkar is a graduate student in journalism at the
University of California at Berkeley.
Packing Heat
by Leena Pendharkar
On March 29, 1994, Mary
Leigh Blek's life was
forever changed.
That day, a New York
police detective called her
Southern California home
to tell her the horrible
news: her 21-year-old son,
Matthew, had been shot
and killed by three
15-year-old kids as they
attempted to rob him.
Blek said her son did not resist the robbers, but they shot him
anyway with a Saturday Night Special, a very small, cheap gun
that's easily concealable.
Though Blek was grief-stricken by
her tragedy, she turned her pain
into activism.
She is now the President of the
Million Mom March, a national
organization that fights for stricter
gun laws. In May, the group held
a 750,000-person rally in
Washington, D.C., to call for more
sensible gun control legislation.
The march also emphasized an important fact: that women
overwhelming support stricter gun control laws and are turning
their concern about gun violence into action— forcing Democrat
Al Gore and Republican George Bush to take notice.
"Many more women, especially suburban women, are vocalizing
their views about gun control," said Nancy Hwa of Handgun
Control, a gun control advocacy organization. "These women
represent a huge voting block, and both presidential candidates
know that."
The lowdown
Gun control has been a complicated social and political issue
because the Constitution guarantees every American the right to
bear arms.
But the problem is that there is currently no national system for
tracking the sale and use of guns.
Eighty-nine percent of American women believe that guns
should be registered, compared to 82 percent of men, according
to the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research, an
independent research institute.
Why do women care?
Women have taken a stand on this issue for a number of
reasons, but most importantly because guns affect their kids.
Although school violence on the
whole has declined in recent
years, the rate of firearm deaths
to children 14 and under is 12
times greater in the U.S. than the
average of 25 other high-income
countries.
And between 1985 and 1994,
the risk of dying from a firearm
injury has more than doubled for
teenagers 15 to 19 years of age,
according to the Centers for
Disease Control.
"Women have always been nurturers—they are inclusive and
want to protect their families," Blek said.
As a result, 40 Million Mom March chapters have popped up
across the country.
Some women like guns
But despite these trends, organizations like the National Rifle
Association (NRA) and Women Against Gun Control say that
every American should be able to own a gun without strict
regulatory standards.
Trish Gregory, a spokesperson for the NRA and Janalee Tobias,
president and founder of Women Against Gun Control said
women should be able to own guns for safety reasons.
"A lot more women have recently
called to join the NRA—they feel like
they are losing their right to self
defense. Many women live in places
where they need protection," Gregory
said.
Tobias agreed.
"Women should oppose gun control
because they are the ones who are
often victims of violent crime," she
said. "The single greatest way for a
woman to protect herself is with a
gun."
Currently, women use guns to protect
themselves from rape 200,000 times
per year, and 76 percent of violent
crime does not involve firearms,
according the NRA.
Plus, Gregory pointed out that many
gun control laws are already on the
books.
She said that in the Columbine shooting, more than 20 gun laws
were violated by the killers.
But she agreed that women are more sensitive to safety issues
when it comes to gun control—and should be.
"Many women who got involved in the Million Mom March have
the same feelings as the NRA—no one does more to prevent
accidents and promote safe gun use than the NRA," she said.
Gregory said that ultimately, education, not legislation, is what
will prevent accidents.
And Tobias said she is opposed to a gun registry because it
ultimately hurts law-abiding citizens.
"Criminals are not going to register a gun, so why should we
punish people who follow the rules with a fee? Ultimately,
registration will lead to confiscation," Tobias said.
What do Al and George say?
Despite their arguments, gun violence is a serious national
problem.
And Gore and Bush have very different ways of tackling it.
Bush wants to focus more on
enforcing gun law enforcement
programs than controlling gun
ownership.
Gore wants to require photos for
registration and to limit gun purchases to one per month. He
would veto legislation that shields gun manufacturers from
lawsuits.
But until something is done, some women, especially Blek, won't
stop fighting.
Though the three teenagers who killed her son are behind bars,
she will continue to fight this battle, she said, so she can help
save someone else's child.
Leena Pendharkar is a graduate student in journalism at the
University of California at Berkeley.
