October, 22 2008, 10:25am EDT
Brady Campaign Praises Student Pledge Against Gun Violence for Their Day of National Concern
WASHINGTON
Today, students across America are observing the Day of National
Concern about Young People and Gun Violence by signing the "Student
Pledge Against Gun Violence".
"The Student Pledge is an invaluable tool to reach young people and
educate them about preventing gun violence," said Paul Helmke,
President of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. "The Brady
Campaign salutes all students who take the pledge, and help make our
schools and communities safer."
In 1996, the United States Senate passed a resolution proclaiming the
first "Day of National Concern", followed by a Presidential
Proclamation by President Bill Clinton. Since then, more than ten
million young people have signed the pledge.
The pledge reads:
- I will never bring a gun to school.
- I will never use a gun to settle a personal problem or dispute.
- I will use my influence with my friends to keep them from using guns to settle disputes.
- My individual choices and actions, when multiplied by
those of young people throughout the country, will make a difference.
Together, by honoring this pledge, we can reverse the violence and grow
up in safety.
"National distribution of the Student Pledge sends a message that is
essential if we are to reverse the tide of violence in this country:
that violence is neither inevitable nor an abstract force against which
we are powerless," reads the mission statement of the Student Pledge.
"Violence is, rather, the sum total of individual decisions, and
reversing the violence will occur individual decision by individual
decision."
More information is available online at www.pledge.org.
Brady United formerly known as The Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence and its legislative and grassroots affiliate, the Brady Campaign and its dedicated network of Million Mom March Chapters, is the nation's largest, non-partisan, grassroots organization leading the fight to prevent gun violence. We are devoted to creating an America free from gun violence, where all Americans are safe at home, at school, at work, and in our communities.
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US Dodges Growing Calls for Probe of Mass Graves at Gaza Hospitals
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While continuing to give Israel billions of dollars in support to wage war on the Gaza Strip, the Biden administration this week has declined to join the growing global demands for an international probe into mass graves discovered at hospitals in the besieged Palestinian enclave.
Two journalists on Tuesday questioned Vedant Patel, a spokesperson for the U.S. State Department, about the administration's response to the hundreds of bodies found at Gaza City's al-Shifa Hospital and Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis as well as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk's call for an independent investigation.
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This is a developing story... Please check back for possible updates...
Civil rights advocates on Wednesday expressed alarm at a rapid escalation by Texas state troopers who descended on a student-led protest at University of Texas at Austin, which was organized in solidarity with Gaza and other U.S. college students taking part in a growing anti-war movement.
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Student-run newspaper The Daily Texanreported roughly 50 state troopers were deployed to stop the initial protest of about 150-200 people.
Ryan Chandler, a reporter for NBC affiliate KXAN-TV and UT alum, reported that there were at least 10 students detained.
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