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Connecticut: High Court Rules That Sandy Hook Families May Sue Gunmaker

By dianeravitch
March 14, 2019 //
37

It seems that the courts will act when legislators, influenced by NRA lobbying, refuse to do so.

Connecticut’s highest state court overturned a lower court decision and concluded that the families of those murdered in the Sandy Hook massacre of 2012 may sue the manufacturer of the gun used in the killings. 

“Connecticut’s Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the manufacturer of the Bushmaster AR-15 rifle can be sued and potentially held liable in connection with the 2012 mass murder at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.

“The groundbreaking decision overturned a lower-court ruling barring the lawsuit, which was brought by the estates of nine victims killed by Adam Lanza, who was armed with the high-powered rifle during his assault on the school. Bushmaster is owned by Remington.

“The families argued, among other things, that the rifle’s manufacturer and distributor negligently allowed and encouraged civilians to use a weapon suitable only for military and law enforcement use.

“The firearms company had convinced a lower court that a federal law enacted in 2005 limited the liability of firearms manufacturers and dealers, essentially preempting wrongful death suits in state and federal courts.

“The Connecticut high court disagreed. It also said the suit, which seeks unspecified damages for each death, could go forward under that state’s Unfair Trade Practices Law.

“Twenty first-grade children and 6 adults were killed and two others wounded in the attack on Dec. 14, 2012. The Bushmaster that Lanza used had been sold to his mother, according to court documents.

“The number of lives lost in those 264 seconds was made possible by the shooter’s weapon of choice,” the plaintiffs said in their lawsuit. “Plaintiffs seek nothing more and nothing less than accountability” for Bushmaster’s choice to “continue profiting” from selling and marketing the weapon for civilian use, the suit said.”

Categories Connecticut, Education Reform, Guns

Gun Debate in Arkansas: And She Persisted.

By dianeravitch
March 9, 2019 //
12

This story in today’s Washington Post moved me. If I had been in the room, I would have jumped up and applauded Senator Flowers.

 

Debate on gun legislation reached a crescendo at the Arkansas State Capitol on Wednesday when a senator fervently denounced a bill that would make it easier to use lethal force in the name of self-defense.

The bill, sponsored by three Republican state senators, would remove a clause from the current law that required a “duty to retreat” in self-defense cases. Previous efforts to push similar “stand your ground” laws in the state, under both Democratic and Republican legislatures, have all failed within the past decade, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports.

On Wednesday, Sen. Stephanie Flowers (D) spoke up when some members of the state’s Judiciary Committee tried to limit debate time on the issue — delivering an ardent monologue to explain why “stand your ground” laws are dangerous, particularly for people and communities of color.

“I am the only person here of color. I am a mother, too, and I have a son,” Flowers said. “And I care as much for my son as y’all care for yours. But my son doesn’t walk the same path as yours does. So this debate deserves more time.”

Addressing gun rights supporters in the room, Flowers said it was “crazy” to limit debate on such a sensitive issue. The senator again invoked her 27-year-old son, adding she was glad he no longer lives in Arkansas.

“You don’t have to worry about your children. . . . I have to worry about my son, and I worry about other little black boys and girls,” she said. “And people coming into my neighborhood, into my city, saying they have open-carry rights walking down in front of my doggone office in front of the courthouse. That’s a bully!”

Flowers said she was “scared” and “threatened” by the notion, and cited instances in which people had entered the legislature while carrying guns under their coats, adding, “You can see the damn print!”

Before she could continue, Flowers was interrupted by the committee chairman, Sen. Alan Clark (R).

“Senator, you need to stop talking,” he whispered.

“No, I don’t!” Flowers lashed back.

“Yes, you do,” Clark replied.

“No, I don’t,” Flowers said. “What the hell you going to do, shoot me?”

“Senator …” Clark said, in an apparent effort to quiet her.

“Senator s—. Go to hell. I’m telling you, this deserves more attention.”

Flowers walked out of the committee room before returning to hear other groups speak out against the bill, including the Arkansas Association of Chiefs of Police and the Arkansas Sheriffs’ Association, according to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. The measure was narrowly defeated in a 4-to-3 vote, with one Republican joining the opposing group.

Video of Flowers’s unrelenting defense was shared widely Friday, drawing praise from those inspired by her fearlessness. Some found the timing of the video to be fitting, as Friday marked International Women’s Day.

The bill’s primary sponsor will attempt to reintroduce the bill Monday to get one more “yes” vote, local NBC affiliate KARKreported.

Categories Arkansas, Guns, Racism

In Remembrance: Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School

By dianeravitch
February 14, 2019 //
18

Today is the one-year anniversary of the massacre at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. It should never be forgotten. Nor should the massacre of children and staff at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT. Nor the massacre at Columbine High School in Colorado. So many more. So many tragedies. So little action in response. So many excuses by politicians who are in a position to limit access to deadly weapons. There will be more tragedies, more empty “thoughts and prayers” until we as a society get serious about establishing effective measures to keep deadly weapons out of the hands of people who have not been carefully screened and trained. Please. No more.

 

 


Teachers Union Leaders on the Anniversary of Parkland Shooting
WASHINGTON—Leaders of the American Federation of Teachers, the National Education Association, the Florida Education Association and the Broward Teachers Union on the anniversary of the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla.:

 

AFT President Randi Weingarten:

“Over the past year, I’ve gotten to know so many of the educators, students and parents of the Stoneman Douglas community. We’ve wept, we’ve mourned, we’ve marched, we’ve lobbied, and we’ve made it clear that we will never stop fighting for the proven interventions that can make our schools safe from gun violence. Today we honor the 17 innocent children and educators murdered last year on Feb. 14—children whose hopes and dreams were snuffed out, and educators who sacrificed their lives shielding their students from bullets. I visited Stoneman Douglas last week, along with AFT leaders from across the country, to honor the students and educators there. The trauma is still real, and the healing is far from over. But they remain ‘MSD Strong,’ and all their unions—the AFT, the NEA, their local affiliates in Broward and statewide affiliates in Florida—remain committed to providing the support the Stoneman Douglas community needs.

 

“Today is also a day to remember, to mourn those who died and to show gratitude to the students, educators and parents who summoned the courage to fight this righteous fight to end the epidemic of gun violence in our country. They’ve done what many of us were unable to do: expose how so many in power have prioritized the interests of the National Rifle Association and gun manufacturers over the safety of children, educators and schools. We stand with them today and every day to ensure our schools are safe sanctuaries, not armed fortresses. We do it for the innocent children and educators lost on Feb. 14. We do it for the countless lives lost to gun violence over the past year. We do it for every student and every educator in a classroom right now who just wants to feel safe and loved in their school. And we will never give up.” 

 

NEA President Lily Eskelsen Garcia:

“While many high schoolers exchange valentines on Feb. 14, the students in Parkland, Fla., will relive the trauma of running for cover and sheltering under desks as they tried to save themselves and their friends from the onslaught of gunfire one year ago. On that day, 17 students and educators lost their lives, making it the deadliest mass shooting at a high school in U.S. history.

 

“Sadly, the Parkland community is not alone in facing this kind of devastating loss. Thoughts and prayers simply aren’t enough to keep our students and educators safe. Politicians can no longer afford to sit on the sidelines, and the National Education Association applauds how members of the U.S. House of Representatives have begun to move legislation that actually addresses the scourge of gun violence plaguing our communities. The lives that have been lost to gun violence cannot be in vain. The time is now to create policies that make a difference and save lives.”

 

FEA President Fedrick Ingram:

“The fight for safe, welcoming public schools in Florida is forever shaped by what happened in Parkland last year. Since then, we have come together to rebuild, and to make sure students and teachers in Florida have the tools they need to build safe sanctuaries where kids can learn free from fear of gun violence and teachers can teach math, science and the arts. Target practice should not be part of the curriculum.”

 

BTU President Anna Fusco:

“BTU stands with and sends our love to the teachers, staff and most importantly the students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas. We will continue the fight to create and maintain safe but welcoming learning environments in all schools.”

 

###

 

 
 
The American Federation of Teachers is a union of 1.7 million professionals that champions fairness; democracy; economic opportunity; and high-quality public education, healthcare and public services for our students, their families and our communities. We are committed to advancing these principles through community engagement, organizing, collective bargaining and political activism, and especially through the work our members do.

The Broward Teachers Union is the fifth-largest teachers union in the country. Its 12,000 members encompass teachers, education support professionals and technical support professionals who work for the Broward Public Schools. BTU also represents Pembroke Pines Charter School teachers. 

 

The Florida Education Association is the state’s largest association of professional employees, with more than 140,000 members. FEA represents pre K-12 teachers, higher education faculty, educational staff professionals, students at our colleges and universities preparing to become teachers and retired education employees.

 

The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing more than 3 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators and students preparing to become teachers. Learn more at www.nea.org and follow on Twitter at @NEAmedia.

 

 

 

Categories Guns

Laura Ingraham Mocked David Hogg, and Now He is Headed to Harvard

By dianeravitch
December 23, 2018 //
32

After the massacre at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, in February, several students emerged as national spokespersons for the anti-gun movement. One of them, David Hogg, helped organize the “March for Our Lives” in D.C., which drew 800,000 people to the nation’s capitol. Hogg became a target for right-wingers and NRA shills.

When he admitted that he had been turned down by four California universities, FOX talk show host Laura Ingraham mocked him as a “whiner.”

This was not a good move for Ingraham.

In March, he told TMZ about his rejection letters he’d received from four California colleges, which came as he organized a movement he said was “changing the world.”

Mocking Hogg’s comments, Fox News host Laura Ingraham tweeted a story from a conservative news website that described the teen as a “Gun Rights Provocateur” — and said Hogg was whining.

“David Hogg Rejected By Four Colleges To Which He Applied and whines about it,” Ingraham tweeted. “(Dinged by UCLA with a 4.1 GPA … totally predictable given acceptance rates.)”

Hogg responded on Twitter, where his number of followers has surpassed 900,000. He compiled a list of 12 companies that advertise on Fox News’ “The Ingraham Angle.”

In a matter of days, Ingraham lost more than a dozen advertisers, including Johnson & Johnson, Nestle, Hulu, Jenny Craig, Ruby Tuesday and Miracle-Ear.

David Hogg was just accepted into Harvard.

Payback is a bitch.

Congratulations, David!

Categories Accountability, Guns, Guns in Schools

Secondary School Principals Blast DeVos “School Safety” Report, No Mention of Gun Control

By dianeravitch
December 18, 2018 //
18

Betsy DeVos and her commission of Cabinet members released their report on school safety, formed in the wake of the Majorie Stoneman Douglas Massacre in Florida. The students quite rightly demands strict limits on access to deadly weapons, especially military grade weapons. The commission decided to ignore this important issue, which the NAASP called “willful ignorance.” As expected, the commission recommended arming school personnel, a proposal strongly opposed by teachers, who fear collateral damage, the danger of guns left in the wrong places, and bullets flying from every direction.

The National Association of Secondary School Principals released this statement:


NASSP Statement on Final Report of Federal Commission on School Safety

Contact: Bob Farrace, NASSP, farraceb@nassp.org, 703-860-7252

Rezton, VA –NASSP Executive Director JoAnn Bartoletti issued the following statement on the final report of the Federal Commission on School Safety:

It is puzzling that the Federal Commission on School Safety would spend seven months and untold tax dollars on rediscovering well-known school safety strategies, in part a subset of the more comprehensive Framework for Safe and Successful Schools. In any case, we welcome the Commission’s voice to our common call for greater attention to the mental health both of our students and to those who might do them harm.
Yet the Commission compromises its own credibility by staying mute on the issue of firearm access and other prevention efforts that reduce the need to turn schools into fortresses. Guns in the wrong hands is a common element in school shootings. The Commission’s failure to address that element—with even the most sensible and noncontroversial recommendations–is nothing short of willful ignorance. Equally obtuse is the Commission’s guidance for arming school personnel–remarkably the only federal guidance this administration does not perceive as intrusive and burdensome, on a notion rejected by a consensus of education organizations and the educators, parents, and students they represent.

Rescinding Discipline Guidance

There is no disputing that racial disparities persist in suspensions and expulsions, and the evidence shows that schools that address the true causes of the gaps see a more positive culture and fewer violent incidents. In schools that adopt restorative practices in place of exclusionary practices, minority students see more time in school, resulting in higher achievement and fewer referrals to juvenile justice systems. The guidance encouraged many schools to find ways to help students succeed rather than react to behaviors that accelerate their failure, and therefore direct students on a path to prosperity rather than prison. There should be no argument that these effects are good things. But in strikingly convoluted and sadly predictable fashion, the Commission asserts without foundation that this non-binding guidance makes school less safe. The conclusion is offensive, it’s infuriating, it’s nonsensical, and it will assuredly lead to the result the administration wanted all along.

Secretary DeVos in particular has demonstrated time and again her dexterity in undoing efforts to enforce the rights of vulnerable student populations. Yet this discipline-disparity crisis is not one she can just kick to the states or private-school-voucher away. The secretary must now act with purpose to fulfill the Department’s expressed mission of “prohibiting discrimination and ensuring equal access to education.” Otherwise she cements her status as a champion among the defenders of the status quo she so often derides. Without the force of law, the guidance could quietly persist to exercise persuasive influence and provide principals cover as they do the right thing often against strong political headwinds. By proposing to rescind the guidance, this administration only intensifies the headwind, sending a clear and dismissive message to our most vulnerable students.

Categories Betsy DeVos, Guns, Guns in Schools

Peter Greene Remembers the Children and Adults Lost at Sandy Hook in 2012

By dianeravitch
December 14, 2018 //
3

Peter Greene asks us to imagine a country that cared about the loss of innocent lives.

Imagine.

Has it been six years? It seems forever, and yet it seems yesterday.

There will be many retro pieces today, looking at the events at Sandy Hook, the children, the families, the killer, the damaged whack jobs who have denied its existence, and of course many reflections about the turning point where we chose as a culture not to turn.

I’ll leave all of that to others. I just want to imagine.

Imagine a country where people rose up and said decades ago, “Guns are nice and important and all, but nothing is more valuable than the lives of innocents. We’re going to have reasonable gun controls in this country before another young life is lost.” Don’t imagine it happening after Sandy Hook. Imagine it years earlier, after the death of just one or two children by gunfire. In this world, Sandy Hook is just one more small school most people never heard of.

Imagine that when people marched against abortion, they simultaneously marched against gun violence. “We are pro-life,” they yelled, “and that means that we want to see every step necessary to preserve the lives of children.” Imagine a world in which pro-life activists chained themselves to the gates of gun factories and shamed gun company executives on their way to work every day.

Imagine that these attitudes were part of a culture wide valuing of children, a culture that loved children so much that it took extraordinary steps to preserve their lives. The government provided free health care for every single child, regardless of family income. People brought their children here from other countries for our free health care and we said, “Great. Bring them. Children are so precious and valuable that we wouldn’t sleep knowing that there was a suffering child in the world that we could have helped, but didn’t.”

Imagine that this love of children extended to education. In fact, imagine that education was one of the biggest budget items for federal and state spending. “Nothing is too good for our children,” said political leaders. “We will make sure that every school has nothing but the newest and best facilities and enough qualified teachers that class sizes can be small. Every child has the personal attention of excellent teachers, and that goes double for children growing up in poor neighborhoods.” Not all the politicians believed this, of course, but in this world, the only way you could get elected was by being a good friend to public schools. And no, there aren’t any charters or vouchers in this world– why would you need them when every public school had the very best in resources, staff and facilities, with the necessary resources to meet the individual needs of each child. “Man,” groused the Pentagon in this world. “I wish we could get the kind of unwavering support public schools get. We have to fight and scrape and argue for every cent.”

Categories Connecticut, Education Reform, Guns, Guns in Schools, Love

Today is the Anniversary of the Sandy Hook Massacre: December 14, 2012

By dianeravitch
December 14, 2018 //
12

The massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, on this date six years ago sent out a clear message: The need for gun control. Guns should not be in the hands of mentally ill people, in this case, the guns were registered to the mother of the shooter, who had a permit.

There have been numerous massacres, in schools and bars and public spaces, since then, most committed with an AR-15, a Bushmaster, or a similar assault weapon intended for military use.

Other countries are far more thoughtful and specific in limiting access to guns. The purchaser must go through extensive training and background checks and must agree to keep the gun in a locked and secure cabinet. It is possible to get a gun, but very cumbersome to do so.

In 2012, there was an expectation that Congress and the states would act promptly to enact gun control legislation after Sandy Hook. Due to pressure by the NRA, Congress did not act at all.

What did happen instead was that the Sandy Hook massacre became a favorite target of Alex Jones, a rightwing pundit, who insisted that it never happened. Someone sent me a video alleging that the entire massacre was a hoax intended to promote unnecessary gun control legislation. The children who were killed, said the conspiracy theorists, were “child actors.”

The families of the children who were murdered are suing Alex Jones, and it is my sincere hope that they win.

Trump and DeVos have urged arming teachers, but no teacher or security guard will ever be as well armed as a perpetrator with assault weapons. Guns don’t belong in schools.

The only lasting tribute to the children and educators who were murdered that day is to continue to fight for gun control so that the scourge of violence is reduced, if not eliminated.

By the way, the new, rebuilt Sandy Hook elementary school had to be evacuated today due to threats of violence.

A personal note: the principal of Sandy Hook elementary school, Dawn Hochsprung, one of the first to be murdered, was a reader of this blog.

Categories Accountability, Guns, Guns in Schools

Paul Karrer: Gun Control Is Not That Hard

By dianeravitch
November 26, 2018 //
32

Paul Karrer teaches fifth-graders in a high-poverty school in southern California.

He is a gun owner who believes in gun control.

It is not hard to do, he says.

Guns can be controlled and be consistent with the Second Amendment. Read his essay to learn how.

Categories Guns

Oklahoma: More Reasons to Vote for Kendra Horn for Congress

By dianeravitch
October 30, 2018 //
4

John Thompson, retired teacher in Oklahoma and frequent contributor to this and other blogs, writes about the Congressional race between Democrat Kendra Horn and Republican incumbent Steve Russell. As you will note, Russell is an extremist on the subject of guns. He opposes any kind of regulation of guns:

Diane, thank you for endorsing Kendra Horn for Oklahoma’s 5th congressional district. And thank you for exposing America’s “Fascist Underbelly,” while condemning the latest mass murder.

Horn’s opponent, Congressman Steve Russell, brags on his web site that he is “a career soldier, collector of military firearms and is the only one on Capitol Hill who is an active firearms manufacturer.” He opposes “knee-jerk” legislative reactions such as banning AR 15s, like the one Robert Bowers used when murdering 11 worshipers at the Tree of Life synagogue.

The Las Vegas mass murder of 59 people prompted Russell to say, “We must never allow some deceptive, fabricated movement on civil rights take away the Bill of Rights. The people of the United States are sovereign through its republican form of government–not the mob.”

Russell says that mass shootings are a “cultural thing.” The automatic weapons are “tools,” and we have an “inalienable and God-given right” to bear them. He also raised the specter of the U.S. becoming Australia and confiscating guns.

Russell’s campaign blamed Democrats like Rep. Maxine Waters, after she was the apparent target of two bombs, for encouraging liberals to “intimidate and harass Republicans.”

During a recent debate with Kendra Horn, who supports such sensible gun control policies, Russell again opposed the banning of bump stocks or high-capacity magazines.

So, what will Russell, the gun maker, say about the latest hate crime?

When Russell isn’t condemning his opponent as a socialist or the Democrats as a mob, he claims that we must restore civility. When he isn’t blaming our nation for mishandling the Kavanaugh hearings, while denying that the Republicans mishandled them, and blaming Democrats for “fighting against” America, he says we must “turn away wrath.”

So, what will Congressman Russell do to deter the series of violent, wrathful actions that were last displayed this weekend?

Categories Guns, Oklahoma

Steven Singer: The Synagogue Massacre Targeted a Diverse Community, Whose Love Will Conquer Hate

By dianeravitch
October 27, 2018 //
27

Steven Singer knows the synagogue and community where an anti-Semitic zealot slaughtered innocent worshippers.

It’s a community that welcomes diversity.

He writes:

I know this community.

I am an extended part of it.

And that’s something of which I am proud.

Just walk along Murray Avenue and you’ll see Indian, Italian, Jewish, African, Chinese – every nationality imaginable – offering the fruits of their culture for friendly commerce.

You’ll see Hasidic Jews in dark hats and flowing tzitzit walking next to women in colorful saris next to trans and lesbians, kids with every color skin playing together in harmony.

Whenever I want a good corned beef sandwich or a quality lox and bagel, I go there. Whenever I want a spicy curry or the freshest sushi or an authentic macaroon, that’s the place. If I want to hear a string quartet or a lecture from a visiting dignitary or even if I want to swim in a public pool, membership to the Jewish Community Center is open to all.

It’s like a few blocks of cosmopolitan life tucked away in a city more known for segregation. We have many ethnic neighborhoods but few where one culture flows so easily into another.

Heck. Even the Tree of Life Synagogue, itself, doesn’t serve one congregation. It serves three who all had services going on at different parts of the building this morning.

There’s just something very special about this place.

It’s where you can go to be yourself – in fact, you’re encouraged to be who you are and not conform to any particular norm. Yet in doing so, you’re somehow demonstrating unity.

A hater arrived to kill.

President Trump says we shouldn’t blame lax gun laws. President Trump says the synagogue should have had armed guards.

Is this the new normal?

Singer thinks Squirrel Hill should be our new normal.

I wish America was more like Squirrel Hill and not the other way around.

If this community’s normal was our national ideal, think of the country we would be living in!

Vote. Vote out the NRA puppets who want to arm everyone and turn our nation into an armed camp, filled with haters.

Vote.

Categories Guns, Love
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