Students sleep in boxes for homeless

Waiting lists, shelters, programs, food banks, as well as applications for jobs, apartments and grants are still not enough to help those in desperate need. Thousands across Connecticut, as well as in New Haven, are currently homeless.

Students lined the residential quad, making houses out of cardboard and tape to sleep in overnight on April 9. Though these are college students and not the homeless, raising awareness about homelessness was at the forefront of these students’ minds.

The residential quad is located between Farnham Hall, Wilkinson Hall, Chase Hall and the Police Station. The lights along the sidewalk and from the residential halls were enough to light the quad as students made houses. Others played volleyball, some were laughing and chatting with their friends, some students sat on rocks to read a book and some students stopped to watch what was going on in the quad.

According to Sarah Petela, a project coordinator at The Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness, guests spoke at Southern on behalf of the Habitat for Humanity club and the Service Team’s program, “Sleep Out for Homeless”—A program that was set out to raise awareness on Southern’s campus about homelessness both within the New Haven community, the state of Connecticut, and the United States.

“New Haven is one of the leading communities dealing with homelessness,” Petela said adding how because of the “lack of Federal and other grants, the programs can’t provide enough recourse for people in need.”

Petela gave an example of an “Emergency Security Deposit,” which the government gives a person in need money for their apartment or house.

“There is limited money for programs like this,” Petela said, who also majored in social work.

“We won’t get as many people this year as last year,” Stefan Keller, 21-year-old social work major, said. “Last year this program was part of homecoming and all the Greeks helped.”
Petela also said that New Haven, while being one of the most expensive places to live also has the highest “disparity rate.”

“New Haven has a good housing authority and is good with merging with other programs,” she said.
Some programs Petela mentioned include Section 8 and Shelter plus Care. These programs are aimed at getting people out of shelters and into homes. However, the downfall for a majority of these programs is that a person has to have a minimum income per month, according to Petela.

One fact that Petela kept stressing is that a lot of homeless people are part of a category called “chronic homeless.” She described chronic homelessness as a situation where a person is homeless for over a year, or three times in a span of five years; homeless before going to jail; or homeless before going into a program for psychiatric care.

“Some people are reluctant to help [the homeless] because they think that the homeless are lazy, unkempt, and don’t want to go get jobs,” Anna Smith, education major, said.

According to Petela, most of the homeless she said she interacts with are filling out applications and are on the phone contacting potential employers all day.

http://thesouthernnews.org/2012/04/22/students-sleep-in-boxes-for-homeless/

Locals scouts strike 'Gold' in community service

Kiernan Black with students (above): Contributed photo

Ann Marie Guzzi with project (above): Photo taken by Anne Marie Lagnese

Kiernan Black wrote a children's book, "Margaret Feeney Had a Farm," about a Fairfield farmer who gathers excess produce from around the state and gives to the needy.

Ann Marie Guzzi taught classes at Wakeman Boys and Girls Club in Southport, on how to make bracelets and collages out of recyclable materials such as hangers, puzzle pieces, and old shirts.

Both community-service projects have earned the two high school juniors the Girl Scouts Gold Star Award -- the organization's highest honor, equivalent to Eagle Scout in Boy Scouts.
Community service projects are the capstones of both the Gold Award and Eagle honors, with one major difference.

"The Girl Scouts' project is about sustainability and how (it) will continue when they're at (college) or no longer in Scouts, while the Eagle Scout's project is usually a one-time event," said Roisin Black, Kiernan's mother and the girls' troop leader.

The two Fairfield girls attend the Academy of Our Lady of Mercy, Lauralton Hall in Milford and are members of troop 32472, which meets at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic School.

The troop currently has five members, and Guzzi and Kiernan Black bring to three the number with Gold Awards -- 60 percent of the troop. The other is Erin McCurley, who received the Gold Award last year.

Nationally, about 5 percent of Scouts earn the Gold Award, according to the Girl Scouts of America's website.

Community service projects typically take months to complete and require more than 500 hours of work. It is recommended that Scouts spend at least 80 hours on each of nine phases.
The steps include: To identify an issue, investigate it thoroughly, get help and build a team, create a plan, present the plan, gather feedback, take action, educate and inspire others.

The real Mrs. Feeney

Kiernan Black's book was about Margaret Feeney's "farm" in Fairfield. The farm in reality was a vegetable garden in Feeney's back yard, but in the book, the woman gives her ailing father fruits and vegetables she has grown to make him feel better.

As word about what her produce had done for her father spread, friends, family, and neighbors, started asking Feeney for things from her garden.

Feeney then went to grocery stores and bigger farms around Connecticut and asked for extra produce they didn't need to help feed the needy. According to the book, Feeney helped out those in need around the state.

"I ended up working with farms throughout Connecticut gleaning their excess produce and donating it to food shelters and food banks throughout the area," Feeney said. "Right now, I'm still active in the community but don't grow anything."

Kiernan Black taught classes at a few locations in Fairfield and Bridgeport on healthy eating and where to get healthy foods, such as local farmers markets. She said her classes were attended by both parents and kids, most of them low-income families

"Some of the kids never saw and didn't know some of these fruits and vegetables were," Kiernan Black said. "A lot of the kids asked `is a zucchini really purple,' and were really surprised because they've never seen these (fruits and vegetables) before. A lot of their vegetable experience is with just what comes in a can."

Kiernan Black also demonstrated how to use some of them in recipes that are in the back of her book. She also had kids and parents participate in making "ants on a log" (celery stuffed with peanut butter and topped with raisins).

Feeney attended some of the classes, too, proving to attendees that the character in the story was a real person.

"She came to some of the classes with me, and it was good for them to see that she was real and not just a character in my book," Kiernan said.

The book sells for about $6 and is available through Amazon.com. All profits from sales benefit Caroline House, an education center for low-income women and children in Bridgeport.
It was in a coffee shop, not a garden, where the Blacks met Feeney.

http://www.fairfieldcitizenonline.com/default/article/Locals-scouts-strike-Gold-in-community-service-4503412.php

Fresh Air Fund seeks host families for the summer

Isaiah Foster, left, a Fresh Air Fund child from Brooklyn, N.Y., plays with Nicolas Blanco of Westport at Westport's Compo Beach last summer. Blanco's family hosted Foster for a week last August and plan on taking him in again this summer in late July. Photo: Contributed Photo


Isaiah Foster, a Fresh Air Fund child from Brooklyn, N.Y., wearing baseball cap, stands last summer with members of the Blanco host family from Westport in their front yard: Lucas in front, Nicolas to the left of Foster, and Kristian to Foster's right. Photo: Contributed Photo

Donte McKenzie, a 9-year-old boy from Brooklyn, N.Y., and Tobey Sappern play on a tire swing last summer on the playground at Fairfield's Roger Sherman Elementary School. The Sappern family of Fairfield hosted McKenzie for a week last August through the Fresh Air Fund program and plan on taking him again for another week this August. Photo: Contributed Photo

Donte McKenzie, a Fresh Air Fund child from Brooklyn, N.Y., right, and Tobey Sappern of Fairfield stand with the Harlem Globetrotters mascot before a game last summer at the Barclay Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. The Sappern family hosted McKenzie for a wek last August and plan on hosting him again for another week this August. Photo: Contributed Photo


The Fresh Air Fund is looking for Westport families to host children from New York City for one to two weeks during the summer.

Line Blanco, a Westport woman with three young children, said her family eagerly awaits hosting 7-year-old Isaiah Foster of Brooklyn, N.Y., for the second year in a row. Isaiah spent a week with them in August, and they expect him back for another week in late July.

"As he gets older, we hope to have him longer, and when he becomes a teen, we hope to have him all summer," Blanco said. "I would encourage (hosting a child)."

The Fresh Air Fund was founded in 1877 as a nonprofit organization by the Rev. Willard Parsons, a minister from rural Sherman, Pa., according to the agency's website. Today, the program provides needy city kids with vacations in suburbs ranging from Virginia to Canada.

Martha Mintzer, the fund's Fairfield County coordinator, said she hopes 35 families in Westport and Fairfield will host children this summer.

The children come from families who receive help from community outreach programs based on family needs, according to Bonnie Dubson, the program's Westport coordinator. To be considered, the child must qualify for free or reduced school lunch, and a family of four cannot have annual income of more than $60,000.

In 2012, about 4,000 kids were hosted in suburban areas, referred to as "friendly towns," on the East Coast and Canada, according to the website. Since its founding, the fund has hosted 1.7 million children.

"About 75 percent of kids are expected to be invited back to the family they were hosted by last year," Mintzer said.

First-time host families are paired with kids from 6 to 12 years old, Dubson said. Families that have hosted before may host the same child until he or she reaches 18, she said.

"I think people decide to host for a variety of reasons," Dubson said. "But the most rewarding aspect of hosting is by far the friendships that are built, some which can last a lifetime."

The organization also runs five summer camps in upstate New York for children who cannot get placed with a host family because of certain medical conditions or special needs.

A family interested in hosting a child must apply and go through a detailed screening process, which includes background checks for family members 18 and over, Mintzer said.

Children have physical exams before leaving home, and host families are informed in advance of any allergies or dietary needs children may have, she said.

Rianne Sappern, of Fairfield, said she is looking forward to hosting 9-year-old Donte McKenzie, of Brooklyn, for the second time this summer. Her family took in McKenzie in August and hopes to have him back in early August this year.

"I loved the idea of it, since I grew up in Brooklyn," said Sappern, who has a son the same age as McKenzie and a daughter three years older. "It's great for the family and the child."

Blanco's children are 3-1/2, 6 and 8 years old -- a good fit for their guest Isaiah, who is 7. She recalls Isaiah last year being puzzled by the idea of walking around barefoot. When they went to Compo Beach, it was the first time he had felt sand squishing between his toes.

She called hosting him "a positive experience" for her family.

"It's not all about what we gave him, it's about what he gave us. It made us come back to what's important, like friendship," Blanco said.

Her kids did not want Isaiah to leave last summer and could not wait for him to return this summer, Blanco said.

"There wasn't a dry eye on the day he left," she said. "My 3-1/2-year-old always asks `When's Isaiah coming back?' "

For information on hosting a child through the Fresh Air program, call 1-800-367-0003 or visit www.freshair.org.

http://www.fairfieldcitizenonline.com/default/article/Fresh-Air-Fund-seeks-host-families-for-the-summer-4523633.php

Greek Life, sports teams, and other social situations and hazing

Many of us deal with the snooty stuck up people who think they're better than everyone else. But for many away from home for the first time want to fit in. They turn to clubs, sports, and the sororities and fraternities. There's booze, parties, practices, and people. So there are people who turn to them in order to try and fit in. But what happens when impaired judgement and the hazing even pledging goes to far? Lawsuits and academic ramifications, amongst other things. In fact some colleges have made the news for hazing, from sports teams to Greek Life.

In fact an article from USAtoday.com on December 19, 2012 "Some members of a Northern Illinois University fraternity have turned themselves in on hazing-related charges in connection with the death of a freshman after a night of drinking. Those who surrendered to police this week will appear in court Jan. 8, Lt. Jason Leverton of the DeKalb, Ill., police department said. Arrest warrants were issued Monday for 22 members of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity. Five were charged with felony hazing, and 17 face misdemeanor charges. The charges stem from the death of David Bogenberger, 19, a freshman who was found dead Nov. 2 with blood-alcohol content five times the legal limit for driving. The coroner said Bogenberger died as a result of cardiac arrhythmia, with alcohol intoxication as a contributing cause. The night before, Bogenberger had participated in a non-sanctioned event called "parents' night" that involved fraternity pledges going from room to room, answering questions from fraternity members and being provided alcohol. NIU spokesman Paul Palian said the fraternity and 31 of its members have been accused of violating the student code of conduct. Pi Kappa Alpha, known as PIKE, could forfeit its status as a student organization, and the students face penalties that could include expulsion. Pi Kappa Alpha International Fraternity Vice President Justin Buck says the DeKalb school's chapter has been administratively suspended. The 17 students facing misdemeanor charges face up to a year in jail and $10,000 fines, Leverton said. The five fraternity members charged with felonies could be sentenced to one to three years in jail and $25,000 fines." (http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2012/12/18/illinois-fraternity-hazing/1776939/)

In many places, Duke University made headlines for their hazing incident. According to WRAL.com on May 23, 2008 (and updated May 24, 2008): "Student Daniel Klufas, of Easton, Conn., and his family have hired a lawyer and private investigator since the incident. Klufas said brothers in Alpha Delta Phi, the fraternity he was pledging, made him take off his clothes while they threw cold water on him, according to attorney, Stephan E. Seeger of Stamford, Conn.Seeger said the combination of cold water followed by warm water meant Klufas had to be taken to the hospital. Seeger said that when Klufas tried to report the incident to Durham Police, officers told Klufas he stood to be arrested as well because a state statute says that anyone who engages in hazing can be charged. A Duke spokesman said the university can’t comment on these types of situations due to federal law. In general, if a hazing complaint is filed, the university investigates and determines if students should be punished. Duke has a policy against hazing, with the maximum penalty being expulsion." (http://www.wral.com/news/local/story/2935181/)

These are two examples. Colleges and universities should crack down more on these hazing incidents. Hazing can be found anywhere. Greek Life, sports, clubs, etc. There are a lot of students who want to fit in, endure it just to have a friend or two.

Take Back The Night

I want to take a personal moment to talk about the event Take Back the Night. This was an event at my school the other night I attended. It was one of the most moving events I have been too. So what you may be wondering, what is Take Back the Night? According to their website, "Over the years, Take Back The Night has become internationally known, as a way to take a stand against sexual violence and speak out against these horrible crimes. The first documented Take Back The Night event in the United States took place in October of 1975 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Citizens rallied together after the murder of young microbiologist, Susan Alexander Speeth, who was stabbed to death by a stranger no more than a block away from her home while walking the streets, alone. The first international Take Back The Night event occurred at The International Tribunal on Crimes against Women. The Tribunal took place March 4-8, 1976 in Brussels, Belgium. Over 2000 women, representing 40 countries, attended the event. In other parts of Europe, Take Back The Night began under the name "Reclaim the Night". In 1976 there were roughly 16,000 rapes reported in Rome which fueled the "Reclaim the Night" movement in Italy. The movement expanded from Rome to West Germany, where women were harassed and assaulted both day and night. Women in West Germany held their first "Reclaim the Night" on April 30, 1977." (http://takebackthenight.org/about) After the event's start and introductions, the survivors, if they chose, got up to share their stories. But on your way into the event, you were given a fake flower pedal, and if a particular story touched you, you gave your pedal to the person who shared their story. The person who shared their story was given a little white box to put the pedals in to keep as a reminder. After the survivors were done sharing their stories, there was a march to protest the violence. The point, to me, of sharing a story, not only to share their story to "shatter the silence through story sharing," but to heal, to some degree, and have support by people who genuinely care, from peers, to counselors and staff at my school. The event was Southern Connecticut State University's annual event to stop the violence. The overwhelming theme was Shatter The Silence. That everybody should step up to stop the violence. If you see something, say something. To me what was really neat about the event, not only did it bring awareness to the subject of sexual violence and that it should be stopped not only by the ones committing the violence, but by anyone who has witnessed the violence. But the stories shared were incredibly moving. I think that people should stop the violence. If you can attend one of these events, please do so. Or visit, http://takebackthenight.org/about.

Local troop produces six Eagle Scouts

Fairfield's Troop 199 recently awarded six Boy Scouts -- almost a quarter of its membersip -- with the rank of Eagle Scout, bucking a nationwide trend of 5 percent of Boy Scouts reaching the organization's highest rank. The new Eagle Scouts are, from left to right, Will Poling, Will Fulda, Michael Connelly, Conor McGuinness, Eric Rasmussen and Michael McQuade. Photo: Contributed Photo

Only 5 percent of Boy Scouts nationally attain the rank of Eagle Scout, the organization's highest honor. But a small troop in Fairfield this year has produced Eagle Scouts at nearly five times that rate.

At a Court of Honor ceremony last month, Troop 199 -- which has 25 members -- awarded Eagle badges to six Scouts, nearly one-quarter of the troop. U.S. Rep. Jim Himes, D-4, was in attendance at the event.

The troop also produced six Eagles two years ago, and its high levels of achievement have come at a time when video games, smartphones and dozens of other teen diversions have driven down participation in Scouting nationwide.

Gordon Fulda, the troop's Scoutmaster for the past six years, said he cannot explain why his troop is far exceeding the national rate for Scouting's highest honor.

"It's really about the boys and all their hard work," he said.

The troop's latest flock of Eagle Scouts includes Michael Connelly, William Fulda, Conor McGuinness, Michael McQuade, William Poling and Eric Rasmussen.

One of the cornerstone requirements of becoming an Eagle is to complete a public service project. The boys' projects ranged from building and installing benches at a local lake, to carrying out a conservation project, to collecting food and money for a local food pantry.

The local troop is producing a high proportion of Eagles even as participation in Scouting nationwide continues a steep, four-decade decline.

Membership in the Boy Scouts of America -- which includes Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts and others -- has fallen from a peak of about 6.5 million Scouts in 1972 to 2.6 million Scouts today, a 60 percent decline, according to figures on the BSA's website.

Of nearly 850,000 Boy Scouts, just over 50,000 -- about one in 20 -- were Eagles in 2011, the most recent year for which Eagle statistics are available.

To become an Eagle, Scouts must rise through the ranks of tenderfoot, second class, first class, star and life, the website said. They also must earn 21 merit badges, such as first aid and emergency preparedness; serve six months in a troop leadership position; and complete an Eagle Scout board of review.

They also must individually plan and execute a major project that benefits a community, school or religious organization.

Michael Connelly, a sophomore at Fairfield College Preparatory School, collected 668 pairs of new and "like new" sneakers for the Bridgeport Rescue Mission and the Bridgeport Prospect House, a homeless shelter that provides substance abuse rehabilitation services, according to a troop news release. He also donated 200 bus tokens to the Prospect House to help the homeless shelter's clients travel to jobs and interviews.

Will Fulda, a senior at Fairfield Warde High School and Gordon Fulda's son, designed, built and installed several benches at Lake Mohegan's beach area, where residents often take their dogs. While walking the family dog, Will Fulda "noticed that there wasn't a place to sit and relax at the `dog beach,' " the release said.

Conor McGuinness, also a Warde senior, organized a drive to collect food and monetary donations for the Bridgeport Rescue Mission. He collected more than 2,400 pounds of food and more than $1,500 to purchase additional food, plus clothing for the homeless shelter's inhabitants.

Michael Eaton McQuade, a freshman at Central Connecticut State University, carried out a conservation project at the Burr Street Audubon Society in October. He raised the money for the project by collecting donations from members of St. Paul's Episcopal Church.

William G. Poling, a junior at Fairfield Ludlowe High School, led a team of friends, Scouts and parents in gathering food and monetary donations for the food pantry run by Fairfield's Operation Hope. The collection helped the nearly 450 families who depend on the pantry every month.

Eric Rasmussen, also a Ludlowe junior, worked with Trout Unlimited to clean up a section of Halfway River on the Monroe-Newtown border polluted with junked cars, appliances and household trash. City Carting provided a large dumpster for the project and donated to the troop the proceeds from selling the scrap metal.

Gordon Fulda said the Scouts deserve all the credit for reaching the Eagle Scout rank, which took about a year to earn.

"The Scoutmaster is just the facilitator," he said. "The Scouts did all the work."

http://www.fairfieldcitizenonline.com/default/article/Local-troop-produces-six-Eagle-Scouts-4241112.php

This is an article I wrote for my internship and had published in the Fairfield Citizen.

gun control and school safety

With everything that has happened lately with school shootings and other shootings around the world and here in the United States, the question looming is what do we do now? I think our first step is to close the loop hole in gun show sales. I also believe we should do more in depth back ground checks, fingerprinting, etc for someone buying a gun. I also believe that if someone in the household has mental problems and is prone to violent behavior, there shouldn't be a gun allowed in the house. But what are some of the facts? According to http://www.justfacts.com/guncontrol.asp "Firearms are generally classified into three broad types: (1) handguns, (2) rifles, and (3) shotguns.Rifles and shotguns are both considered "long guns." A semi-automatic firearm fires one bullet each time the trigger is pulled and automatically loads another bullet for the next pull of the trigger. A fully automatic firearm (sometimes called a "machine gun") fires multiple bullets with the single pull of the trigger. Ownership: As of 2009, the United States has a population of 307 million people. Based on production data from firearm manufacturers, there are roughly 300 million firearms owned by civilians in the United States as of 2010. Of these, about 100 million are handguns. Based upon surveys, the following are estimates of private firearm ownership in the U.S. as of 2010: Households With a Gun Adults Owning a Gun Adults Owning a Handgun Percentage 40-45% 30-34% 17-19% Number 47-53 million 70-80 million 40-45 million * A 2005 nationwide Gallup poll of 1,012 adults found the following levels of firearm ownership: Category: Percentage Owning a Firearm Households: 42% Individuals: 30% Male: 47% Female: 13% White: 33% Nonwhite: 18% Republican: 41% Independent: 27% Democrat: 23% * In the same poll, gun owners stated they own firearms for the following reasons: Protection Against Crime 67% Target Shooting 66% Hunting 41% Crime and Self-Defense: * Roughly 16,272 murders were committed in the United States during 2008. Of these, about 10,886 or 67% were committed with firearms. * A 1993 nationwide survey of 4,977 households found that over the previous five years, at least 0.5% of households had members who had used a gun for defense during a situation in which they thought someone 'almost certainly would have been killed" if they "had not used a gun for protection.' Applied to the U.S. population, this amounts to 162,000 such incidents per year. This figure excludes all 'military service, police work, or work as a security guard.' * Based on survey data from the U.S. Department of Justice, roughly 5,340,000 violent crimes were committed in the United States during 2008. These include: simple/aggravated assaults, robberies, sexual assaults, rapes, and murders. Of these, about 436,000 or 8% were committed by offenders visibly armed with a gun. * Based on survey data from a 2000 study published in the Journal of Quantitative Criminology, U.S. civilians use guns to defend themselves and others from crime at least 989,883 times per year. * A 1993 nationwide survey of 4,977 households found that over the previous five years, at least 3.5% of households had members who had used a gun 'for self-protection or for the protection of property at home, work, or elsewhere.' Applied to the U.S. population, this amounts to 1,029,615 such incidents per year. This figure excludes all 'military service, police work, or work as a security guard.' * A 1994 survey conducted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that Americans use guns to frighten away intruders who are breaking into their homes about 498,000 times per year. * A 1982 survey of male felons in 11 state prisons dispersed across the U.S. found • 34% had been "scared off, shot at, wounded, or captured by an armed victim" • 40% had decided not to commit a crime because they 'knew or believed that the victim was carrying a gun' • 69% personally knew other criminals who had been 'scared off, shot at, wounded, or captured by an armed victim.' Vulnerability to Violent Crime: At the current homicide rate, roughly one in every 240 Americans will be murdered. A U.S. Justice Department study based on crime data from 1974-1985 found: • 42% of Americans will be the victim of a completed violent crime (assault, robbery, rape) in the course of their lives • 83% of Americans will be the victim of an attempted or completed violent crime • 52% of Americans will be the victim of an attempted or completed violent crime more than once. 1997 survey of more than 18,000 prison inmates found that among those serving time for a violent crime, '30% of State offenders and 35% of Federal offenders carried a firearm when committing the crime.' Criminal Justice System: Nationwide in 2008, law enforcement agencies reported that 55% of aggravated assaults, 27% of robberies, 40% of rapes, and 64% of murders that were reported to police resulted in an alleged offender being arrested and turned over for prosecution. Currently, for every 12 aggravated assaults, robberies, sexual assaults, rapes, and murders committed in the United States, approximately one person is sentenced to prison for committing such a crime.A 2002 U.S. Justice Department study of 272,111 felons released from state prisons in 1994 found that within three years of their release: • at least 67.5% had been arrested for committing a new offense • at least 21.6% had been arrested for committing a new violent offense • these former inmates had been charged with committing at least 2,871 new homicides, 2,444 new rapes, 3,151 other new sexual assaults, 2,362 new kidnappings, 21,245 new robberies, 54,604 new assaults, and 13,854 other new violent crimes. • Of 1,662 murders committed in New York City during 2003-2005, more than 90% were committed by people with criminal records. Washington, DC: In 1976, the Washington, D.C. City Council passed a law generally prohibiting residents from possessing handguns and requiring that all firearms in private homes be (1) kept unloaded and (2) rendered temporally inoperable via dis-assembly or installation of a trigger lock. The law became operative on Sept. 24, 1976. On June 26, 2008, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a 5-4 ruling, struck down this law as unconstitutional. Britain: In 1920, Britain passed a law requiring civilians to obtain a certificate from their district police chief in order to purchase or possess any firearm except a shotgun. To obtain this certificate, the applicant had to pay a fee, and the chief of police had to be "satisfied" that the applicant had "good reason for requiring such a certificate" and did not pose a 'danger to the public safety or to the peace.' The certificate had to specify the types and quantities of firearms and ammunition that the applicant could purchase and keep. In 1968, Britain made the 1920 law stricter by requiring civilians to obtain a certificate from their district police chief in order to purchase or possess a shotgun. This law also required that firearm certificates specify the identification numbers ('if known') of all firearms and shotguns owned by the applicant. In 1997, Britain passed a law requiring civilians to surrender almost all privately owned handguns to the police. More than 162,000 handguns and 1.5 million pounds of ammunition were "compulsorily surrendered" by February 1998. Using 'records of firearms held on firearms certificates,' police accounted for all but fewer than eight of all legally owned handguns in England, Scotland, and Wales. Chicago: In 1982, the city of Chicago instituted a ban on handguns. This ban barred civilians from possessing handguns except for those registered with the city government prior to enactment of the law. The law also specified that such handguns had to be re-registered every two years or owners would forfeit their right to possess them. In 1994, the law was amended to require annual re-registration. In the wake of Chicago's handgun ban, at least five suburbs surrounding Chicago instituted similar handgun bans. When the Supreme Court overturned the District of Columbia's handgun ban in June 2008, at least four of these suburbs repealed their bans. In June 2010, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled (5-4) that Chicago's ban is unconstitutional. Background Checks and Criminals' Sources of Guns: Under federal law: • It is illegal and punishable by up to 10 years in prison for the following people to receive, possess, or transport any firearm or ammunition: someone convicted of or under indictment for a felony punishable by more than one year in prison, someone convicted of a misdemeanor punishable by more than two years in prison, a fugitive from justice, an unlawful user of any controlled substance, someone who has been ruled as mentally defective or has been committed to any mental institution, an illegal alien, someone dishonorably discharged from the military, someone who has renounced his or her U.S. citizenship, someone subject to certain restraining orders, or someone convicted of a domestic violence misdemeanor. • It is illegal and punishable by up to 10 years in prison to sell or transfer any firearm or ammunition to someone while "knowing" or having "reasonable cause to believe" this person falls into any of the prohibited categories listed above. • It is illegal to "engage in the business of importing, manufacturing, or dealing in firearms" without a federal license to do so. • It is illegal for any federally licensed firearms business to sell or transfer any firearm without first conducting a background check to see if the buyer/recipient falls into any of the prohibited categories listed above. • It is illegal for anyone except a federally licensed firearms business to sell, buy, trade, or transfer a firearm across state lines. Under federal law, private individuals are not required to a conduct a background check before selling or transferring a firearm to someone who lives in the same state, but it is illegal and punishable by up to 10 years in prison for a private individual to sell or transfer a firearm while "knowing" or having "reasonable cause to believe" that the recipient falls into one of the prohibited categories above. Some states such as California require background checks for all firearms transactions, including those conducted between private individuals. Denials: In the 10-year period from November 30, 1998 to December 31, 2008, about 96 million background checks for gun purchases were processed through the federal background check system. Of these, approximately 681,000 or about 1% were denied. During 2002 and 2003, out of 17 million background checks resulting in 120,000 denials, the federal government prosecuted 154 people (about one-tenth of 1% of the denials). According to federal agents interviewed in a 2004 U.S. Justice Department investigation, the "vast majority" of denials under the federal background check system are issued to people who are not "a danger to the public because the prohibiting factors are often minor or based on incidents that occurred many years in the past." As examples of such, agents stated that denials have been issued due to a 1941 felony conviction for stealing a pig and a 1969 felony conviction for stealing hubcaps. The same investigation audited 200 background check denials and found that 8% of denied applicants were not prohibited from lawfully possessing a firearm. During 2008, applicants appealed about 19% of the 70,725 background check denials issued that year. Of these, about 23% were later overturned and the applications approved. Allowances: As of 2010, federal law does not prohibit members of terrorist organizations from purchasing or possessing firearms or explosives. Between February 2004 and February 2010, 1,225 firearm and three explosives background checks for people on terrorist watch lists were processed through the federal background check system. Of these, 91% of the firearm transactions and 100% of the explosives transactions were allowed. Under federal law, individuals who have been convicted of a felony offense that would typically prohibit them from possessing firearms can lawfully possess firearms if their civil rights are restored by the requisite government entities.[84] As of 2002, 15 states automatically restore the firearm rights of convicts upon their release from prison or completion of parole, and 6 other states automatically restore the firearm rights of juvenile convicts upon their release from prison or completion of parole. In 2004, the Office of the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Justice wrote that this system may result in a paradoxical situation in which someone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence is permanently barred from owning a firearm, while someone who kills his spouse has his firearm rights restored after serving his sentence. Enforcement: To undergo a background check, prospective gun buyers are required by federal regulations to present "photo-identification issued by a government entity." Using fake driver's licenses bearing fictitious names, investigators with the Government Accountability Office had a 100% success rate buying firearms in five states that met the minimum requirements of the federal background check system. A 2001 report of this investigation states that the federal background check system "does not positively identify purchasers of firearms," and thus, people using fake IDs are not flagged by the system.[89] Gun Shows: 'A gun show is an exhibition or gathering where guns, gun parts, ammunition, gun accessories, and literature are displayed, bought, sold, traded, and discussed.' Roughly 2,000-5,200 gun shows take place in the United States each year. Gun shows 'provide a venue for the sale and exchange of firearms by federal firearms licensees (FFLs).... Such shows also are a venue for private sellers who buy and sell firearms for their personal collections or as a hobby. In these situations, the sellers are not required to have a federal firearms license. Although federal firearms laws apply to both FFLs and private sellers at gun shows, private sellers, unlike FFLs, are under no legal obligation to ask purchasers whether they are legally eligible to buy guns or to verify purchasers' legal status through background checks....' In the three-year period from October 2003 through September 2006, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) conducted 202 operations at 195 gun shows, leading to 121 arrests and 83 convictions (with some cases still pending as of June 2007). A 1997 U.S. Justice Department survey of 14,285 state prison inmates found that among those inmates who carried a firearm during the offense for which they were sent to jail, 0.7% obtained the firearm at a gun show, 1% at a flea market, 3.8% from a pawn shop, 8.3% from a retail store, 39.2% through an illegal/street source, and 39.6% through family or friends.[94] Right-to-Carry Laws: Right-to-carry laws permit individuals who meet certain 'minimally restrictive' criteria (such as completion of a background check and gun safety course) to carry concealed firearms in most public places.[95] Concealed carry holders must also meet the minimum federal requirements for gun ownership as detailed above. * Each state has its own laws regarding right-to-carry and generally falls into one of three main categories: 1) 'shall-issue' states, where concealed carry permits are issued to all qualified applicants 2) 'may-issue' states, where applicants must often present a reason for carrying a firearm to an issuing authority, who then decides based on his or her discretion whether the applicant will receive a permit 3) 'no-issue' states, where concealed carry is generally forbidden As of January 2012: • 40 states are shall-issue: Alaska Arizona Arkansas Colorado Florida Georgia Idaho Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Mexico North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming NOTE: Alaska, Arizona, Vermont, and Wyoming allow lawful firearm owners to carry concealed firearms without a permit. All other shall-issue states require firearm owners to obtain a permit to carry concealed firearms. • 9 states are may-issue: Alabama California Connecticut Delaware Hawaii Maryland Massachusetts New Jersey New York • 1 state is no-issue: Illinois Florida: On October 1, 1987, Florida's right-to-carry law became effective. This law requires that concealed carry licensees be 21 years of age or older, have clean criminal/mental health records, and complete a firearms safety/training course. As of July 31, 2010, Florida has issued 1,825,143 permits and has 746,430 active licensees, constituting roughly 5.4% of the state's population that is 21 years of age or older. └ Florida * On October 1, 1987, Florida's right-to-carry law became effective.[103] * This law requires that concealed carry licensees be 21 years of age or older, have clean criminal/mental health records, and complete a firearms safety/training course.[104] * As of July 31, 2010, Florida has issued 1,825,143 permits and has 746,430 active licensees,[105] constituting roughly 5.4% of the state's population that is 21 years of age or older.[106] [107] * Since the outset of the Florida right-to-carry law, the Florida murder rate has averaged 36% lower than it was before the law took effect, while the U.S. murder rate has averaged 15% lower.[108] * From the outset of the Florida right-to-carry law through July 31, 2010, Florida has revoked 5,674 or 0.3% of all issued permits. Of these: • 522 permits were revoked for crimes committed prior to licensure • 4,955 permits were revoked for crimes committed after licensure, of which 168 involved the usage of a firearm. Texas: In January 1996, Texas's right-to-carry law became effective. This law requires that concealed carry licensees be at least 21 years of age (or 18 years of age if a member or veteran of the U.S. armed forces), have clean criminal/mental health records, and complete a handgun proficiency course. In 2009, Texas had 402,914 active licensees, constituting roughly 2.4% of the state's population that is 21 years of age or older. Since the outset of the Texas right-to-carry law, the Texas murder rate has averaged 30% lower than it was before the law took effect, while the U.S. murder rate has averaged 28% lower. Michigan: On July 1, 2001, Michigan's right-to-carry law became effective. This law requires that concealed carry licensees be at least 18 years of age (or 21 years of age if purchasing a handgun from a licensed dealer), have clean criminal/mental health records, and pass a written firearms safety test. Since the outset of the Michigan right-to-carry law, the Michigan murder rate has averaged 4% lower than it was before the law took effect, while the U.S. murder rate has averaged 2% lower. Accidents: Fatal: In 2007, there were 613 fatal firearm accidents in the United States, constituting 0.5% of 123,706 fatal accidents that year. Fatal firearm accidents in 2007 by age groups: Age Group Fatal Firearm Accidents Raw number Portion of fatal accidents from all causes <1 yrs 1 0.1% 1-4 yrs 18 1.1% 5-9 yrs 20 2.1% 10-14 yrs 26 2.1% 15-24 yrs 155 1.0% 25-34 yrs 94 0.6% 35-44 yrs 91 0.5% 45-54 yrs 82 0.4% 55-64 yrs 57 0.5% 65+ yrs 69 0.2% Non-Fatal: In 2007, there were roughly 15,698 emergency room visits for non-fatal firearm accidents,[123] constituting 0.05% of 27.7 million emergency room visits for non-fatal accidents that year. These emergency room visits for non-fatal firearm accidents resulted in 5,045 hospitalizations,[125] constituting 0.4% of 1.4 million non-fatal accident hospitalizations that year. Harm vs. Benefit: In D.C. v Heller, the 2008 Supreme Court ruling striking down Washington's D.C.'s handgun ban, Justice Stephen Breyer authored a dissenting opinion that was joined by Justices John Paul Stevens, David Souter, and Ruth Bader Ginsburg. This committee report cites no source or evidence for this statistic. A 1994 survey conducted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that Americans use guns to frighten away intruders who are breaking into their homes about 498,000 times per year. According to the CDC, there were about 18,498 gun-related accidents that resulted in death or an emergency room visit during 2001[131] (the earliest year such data is available from the CDC[132]). This is roughly 27 times lower than the CDC's 1994 estimate for the number of times Americans use guns to frighten away intruders who are breaking into their homes. Safety: Five critical rules of gun safety from the NRA and other sources: 1) Always keep the gun pointed in a safe direction (whether loaded or unloaded). 2) Always keep your finger off the trigger until ready to shoot. 3) Always keep the gun unloaded until ready to shoot. 4) Be aware of what is behind your target. 5) When handling firearms, never use alcohol or any drug that might impair your awareness or judgment (including prescription drugs). Constitution: In the Bill of Rights, the Second Amendment to the Constitution reads: A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed. Gun control proponents have argued and some federal courts have ruled that the Second Amendment does not apply to individual citizens of the United States but only to members of militias, which, they assert, are now the state National Guard units.In 2002, a federal appeals court panel ruled that 'the people' only 'have the right to bear arms in the service of the state.' Gun rights proponents have argued and some federal courts have ruled that the Second Amendment recognizes 'an individual right to keep and bear arms.' In 2001, a federal appeals court panel ruled that the Second Amendment 'protects the right of individuals, including those not then actually a member of any militia or engaged in active military service or training, to privately possess and bear their own firearms....' James Madison was the primary author of the Bill of Rights,[166] is known as the 'Father of the Constitution' for his central role in its formation,[167] and was one of three authors of the Federalist Papers, a group of essays published in newspapers and books to explain and lobby for ratification of the Constitution.[168] [169] In Federalist Paper 46, James Madison addressed the concern that a standing federal army might conduct a coup to take over the nation. He argued that this was implausible because, based on the country's population at the time, a federal standing army couldn't field more than 25,000-30,000 men. He then wrote: To these would be opposed a militia amounting to near half a million of citizens with arms in their hands, officered by men chosen from among themselves, fighting for their common liberties, and united and conducted by governments possessing their affections and confidence. Besides the advantage of being armed, which the Americans possess over the people of almost every other nation, the existence of subordinate governments, to which the people are attached, and by which the militia officers are appointed, forms a barrier against the enterprises of ambition, more insurmountable than any which a simple government of any form can admit of. Notwithstanding the military establishments in the several kingdoms of Europe, which are carried as far as the public resources will bear, the governments are afraid to trust the people with arms. D.C. v Heller: In 1976, the Washington, D.C. City Council passed a law generally prohibiting residents from possessing handguns and requiring that all firearms in private homes be (1) kept unloaded and (2) rendered temporally inoperable via disassembly or installation of a trigger lock. On June 26, 2008, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a 5-4 ruling known as D.C. v Heller, struck down this law as unconstitutional. In D.C. v Heller, the Supreme Court Justices debated the meaning of the phrase 'right of the people' in the Second Amendment. Below are excerpts of this debate: • Majority Opinion (Justice Scalia, joined by Roberts, Kennedy, Thomas, and Alito): The unamended Constitution and the Bill of Rights use the phrase "right of the people" two other times... The Ninth Amendment uses very similar terminology.... All three of these instances unambiguously refer to individual rights, not "collective" rights, or rights that may be exercised only through participation in some corporate body.... ... Nowhere else in the Constitution does a 'right' attributed to 'the people' refer to anything other than an individual right. What is more, in all six other provisions of the Constitution that mention "the people," the term unambiguously refers to all members of the political community, not an unspecified subset. • Dissenting Opinion (Justice Stevens, joined by Souter, Ginsburg, and Breyer): The Court also overlooks the significance of the way the Framers used the phrase "the people" in these constitutional provisions. In the First Amendment, no words define the class of individuals entitled to speak, to publish, or to worship; in that Amendment it is only the right peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances, that is described as a right of "the people." These rights contemplate collective action. While the right peaceably to assemble protects the individual rights of those persons participating in the assembly, its concern is with action engaged in by members of a group, rather than any single individual. Likewise, although the act of petitioning the Government is a right that can be exercised by individuals, it is primarily collective in nature. For if they are to be effective, petitions must involve groups of individuals acting in concert. ... As used in the Fourth Amendment, 'the people' describes the class of persons protected from unreasonable searches and seizures by Government officials. It is true that the Fourth Amendment describes a right that need not be exercised in any collective sense. But that observation does not settle the meaning of the phrase 'the people' when used in the Second Amendment. • Majority Opinion (Justice Scalia, joined by Roberts, Kennedy, Thomas, and Alito): Justice Stevens is of course correct ... that the right to assemble cannot be exercised alone, but it is still an individual right, and not one conditioned upon membership in some defined "assembly," as he contends the right to bear arms is conditioned upon membership in a defined militia. And Justice Stevens is dead wrong to think that the right to petition is "primarily collective in nature." Ibid. See McDonald v. Smith, 472 U. S. 479, 482-484 (1985) (describing historical origins of right to petition). McDonald v Chicago: In an 1833 Supreme Court case known as Barron v Baltimore, the Court ruled that the rights of the people in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights only had to be respected by the federal government and could be infringed by state governments.[176] During the aftermath of the Civil War in 1868, the United States adopted the 14th Amendment to the Constitution, the first section of which reads: ... No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.... Senator Jacob Howard of Michigan served on the committee that drafted the 14th Amendment, and he introduced it on the floor of the Senate. In this speech, he stated that that the "great object" of the first section of the amendment is "to restrain the power of the States and compel them at all times to respect" the "personal rights guaranteed and secured by the first eight amendments of the Constitution" including 'the right to keep and to bear arms....' In 1982, the city of Chicago instituted a ban on handguns. This ban barred civilians from possessing handguns except for those registered with the city government prior to enactment of the law. The law also specified that such handguns had to be re-registered every two years or owners would forfeit their right to possess them. In 1994, the law was amended to require annual re-registration.On June 28, 2010, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled (5-4) that this ban is unconstitutional." But now the questions is how do we keep our schools safe? I personally believe that we should do bullet proof and/or glass you can't break, doors you are unable to open from the outside unless you're buzzed in. Some good suggestions from: http://www.education.com/magazine/article/Keeping_Schools_Safe/, are listed below "First, the good news: media reports to the contrary, most American schools are pretty darn safe. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, only about 6% of students between ages 12 – 18 report being scared that they’ll be hurt at school. In fact, our youth are 50 times more likely to be murdered away from school than in it. Still, in the 2003 – 2004 school year, 44% of public schools reported at least one violent incident to the police, and 21 students and 37 staff members were murdered at school. That’s the bad news. While every district has different needs, the National School Safety Center offers these tips for concerned parents: Talk with your kids. Ask if they feel ever feel afraid, if they've ever heard about gangs or weapons on campus, and what the school does to prevent bullying. Does the school enforce no-drinking and no-drugs policies? If they ever heard something alarming (rumors about a school shooting, dating violence, a predatory teacher) would they know whom to tell, and do they feel they could safely report it? Ask what the school is doing to keep students safe. If there were an emergency at school, how would you be notified? If a student seems depressed or aggressive, does the guidance counselor notify his parents and refer him to professional help? Is there a zero-tolerance policy about guns and violence in school? Are there metal detectors and security guards? Does the school partner with local law enforcement or offer fingerprinting for younger children? Even if you live in a safe community, safety should be on the agenda at school board meetings and it should be a top priority for the principal. Empower students. Suggest that the principal appoint student reps to discuss safety at school board meetings, establish an anonymous tip line so students can report threats and crime without fear of reprisal, establish a student disciplinary committee, offer classes on conflict resolution and mediation, and develop mentor-ship and peer counseling programs for newcomers and victims of bullying. If she’s unresponsive, start a parent committee to keep tabs. Get involved. Visit the school during lunch, between classes, and after school. Does the campus feel safe? Did anyone check your ID? Were students wearing gang colors or baggy outerwear that could hide a weapon? Get to know your child’s teachers, and tell them you want to hear from them if they have any concerns about your child’s behavior or safety. Make sure the staff has your work and home phone numbers in case of emergency."