Newtown Action Alliance and Ethan Miller Song Foundation Applaud President Joe Biden for Making an Investment in Gun Violence Prevention
For Immediate Release
June 4, 2021
Newtown Action Alliance and Ethan Miller Song Foundation Applaud President Joe Biden
for Making an Investment in Gun Violence Prevention
Encourage Gun Violence Prevention Groups to Partner with Police Departments Across the Nation
to Hold #KeepKidsSafe Gun Buyback and Firearm Safe Giveaway Day in October
Newtown, CT- On May 28, 2021, President Joe Biden released his budget for fiscal year 2022, which includes investments to combat the gun violence public health epidemic in our nation.
Specifically, “The Budget includes $2.1 billion, an increase of $232 million above the 2021 enacted level, for DOJ to address the gun violence public health crisis plaguing communities across the Nation. Investments include $401 million in State and local grants, an increase of $162 million or 68 percent. This level supports existing programs to improve background check systems and invests in new programs to incentivize State adoption of gun licensing laws and establish voluntary gun buyback pilot programs. In addition, a total of $1.6 billion is provided to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, an increase of $70 million or five percent over the 2021 enacted level, to oversee the safe sale, storage, and ownership of firearms and to support the agency’s other work to fight violent crime. The Budget request for HHS doubles funding for firearm violence prevention research at CDC and NIH. Combined, the Budget includes $200 million in discretionary resources for DOJ and HHS to support a new Community Violence Intervention initiative to implement evidence-based community violence interventions locally, which may include hospital-based interventions. In addition to these amounts, the Budget supports the American Jobs Plan proposal for $5 billion in total mandatory resources from 2023 to 2029 to provide long-term support for the Community Violence Intervention initiative.”
Po Murray, Chairwoman of Newtown Action Alliance, said, “Too many families and communities are being impacted by gun violence in America. Last week, nine men were senselessly shot and killed at their workplace in San Jose, California. While we wait for Congress to pass universal background check, assault weapons ban, extreme risk protection, safe firearm storage and other lifesaving legislation as a first step to combating the gun violence crisis in our nation, we applaud President Biden for taking budgetary action. Federal investments in state licensing laws, safe firearm storage, voluntary gun buybacks, and community violence intervention programs will save lives.”
“On January 31, 2018, my beautiful boy, Ethan, walked out of our home and towards his death in Guilford, Connecticut. He walked to his neighbor’s house to visit his best friend. Our neighbor's father had three unsecured guns and ammunition in a shoebox. The boys started playing with the guns and Ethan was shot in the head. He had zero chance of survival. That morning he had gotten his braces off, another milestone. He turned 15 years old on January 19, 2018 - he had his whole life ahead of him,” said Kristin Song, Founder of Ethan Miller Song Foundation and Board Advisor of Newtown Action Alliance.
Song continued, “After my son was killed, we led the fight to pass Ethan’s Law to strengthen the safe storage law in Connecticut. We are now working with Senator Richard Blumenthal and Representative Rosa DeLauro to pass the federal version of Ethan’s Law to set the federal standards for safe firearm storage. An estimated 4,600,000 minors in the United States live in homes with at least one unsecured firearm. More than a third of all unintentional shootings of children take place in the homes of their friends, neighbors, or relatives. While we fight for Ethan’s Law to pass on the federal level, we are thankful that President Biden has made an investment in safe firearm storage.
“Firearm injury is now the leading cause of death for children and young adults in the United States,” Song said. “In the first 154 days of this year, there have been 244 mass shootings, 18,414 Americans have been killed by guns and another 15,695 Americans have been injured; 636 children and teens have been killed by guns and 1560 have been injured; 867 people have been killed due to unintentional shootings; and 10,164 people have died due to gun suicides. Safe storage practices will reduce unintentional shootings, gun suicides, mass shootings, and gun thefts that contribute to illegal guns in communities most impacted by gun violence. No mother should outlive her child due to gun violence. We can and must do more to end the gun violence public health epidemic in our nation.”
Murray added, “American Pediatric Association tells parents that a gun-free home is the safest home for their children. Studies show having a gun in the home doubles the risk for gun homicides and triples the risk for gun suicides. The Newtown Action Alliance Foundation and Ethan Miller Song Foundation have established the Campaign to Keep Kids Safe to offer a safe and legal method for parents and other family members to remove guns from their homes through gun buyback events. Families with guns in their homes are encouraged to safely store their weapons. On October 16, 2021, the campaign will work with police departments, hospitals and other partners to coordinate a state-wide #KeepKidsSafe Gun Buyback and Safe Giveaway Day in the State of Connecticut. Police departments, hospitals, and gun violence prevention groups in Connecticut and other states are encouraged to contact us at info@newtownacton.org to coordinate the event in their communities.”
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Newtown Action Alliance (http://alliance.newtownaction.org/) is a Newtown-based, national grassroots organization formed after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings. Our mission is to achieve the steady and continuous reduction of gun violence through legislative and cultural changes.
The mission of the Ethan Miller Song Foundation (https://www.songstrong.org/home) is to develop and support programs and causes that keep kids safe, rescue neglected animals and honor our veterans - all things close to Ethan’s heart.