Campaign to Keep Guns Off Campus Issues Statement on University of Alabama-Huntsville Shooting

CROTON FALLS, N.Y., Feb. 15 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Amy Bishop, a mother of four and a Harvard-educated biologist, used a handgun to fatally shoot three fellow biology professors and injure three others during a departmental staff meeting on the University of Alabama-Huntsville campus on Feb. 12.  Bishop, the alleged shooter, was upset that she had been denied tenure by the university.  No students were involved in the shooting.

In response Andy Pelosi, the Director of the Campaign to Keep Guns Off Campus, issued the following statement:

"We offer our condolences to the families of the victims and the entire University of Alabama-Huntsville community.

"This tragic incident shows once again that an angry individual with access to a deadly handgun can commit mass murder wherever people gather, in workplaces, shopping malls, churches, schools and yes, universities.  This random and horrific attack also demonstrates the futility and irresponsibility of trying to force loaded and concealed handguns onto college campuses as the solution to prevent mass shootings and gun violence.  Such a radical policy would risk the safety and security of every faculty member and student on campus on literally a continual basis.  

"The gun lobby's predictable response to this rampage killing is to arm students and professors, believing in a mistaken 'wild west' fantasy where carrying loaded handguns results in killing armed perpetrators.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  The gun lobby conveniently ignores incidents such as in Lakewood, Washington where on Nov. 29, 2009, a gunman massacred four police officers inside a coffee shop even though the officers had loaded handguns on their hips.  But the officers were still surprised and overwhelmed by the attacker, Maurice Clemmons.  Why does anyone think that untrained students or professors would be better able to stop a rampage shooting than trained security officers?  

"The Campaign to Keep Guns Off Campus calls on lawmakers in states with pending 'guns on campus' bills to immediately withdraw such irresponsible and dangerous legislation.  

"In addition, the Campaign is urging colleges and universities to band together to oppose the gun lobby's agenda to force guns on college campuses. To date, more than 120 colleges and universities in 30 states, including the University of Alabama-Huntsville, have joined the campaign.  

(See list: http://preview.tinyurl.com/Guns-Off-Campus-List-Schools).

"While school shootings such as the recent attack in Alabama receive a great deal of national attention, such incidents are extremely rare. The fact is that America's educational institutions are among the safest environments for students, faculty, and staff. Much safer than the communities that surround them. A Dept. of Justice study found that 93 percent of violence against students occurs off campus. This is due to the fact that nearly all colleges and universities have policies that prohibit firearms on campus."  

SOURCE Campaign to Keep Guns Off Campus

WANT YOUR COMPANY'S NEWS FEATURED ON PRNEWSWIRE.COM?

440k+
Newsrooms &
Influencers

9k+
Digital Media
Outlets

270k+
Journalists
Opted In

GET STARTED