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Press Coverage
   

 

State organizations that are part of States United receive a great deal of press coverage. Their members and Executive Directors also write numerous op ed pieces and letters to the editor which are printed in papers across the country. Here are some highlights of current press coverage:

  • Jeri Bonavia, the Executive Director of our Wisconsin organization, WAVE, was part of a rpess conference on March 3, 2008 about the dangers of paint kits sold by a Wisconsin company which make real guns look like toys in bright colors - even pink.  As reported by local FOX News, the press conference was held at the Children's Hospital in Milwaukee with Mayor Tom Barrett and Police Chief Edward Flynn.
  • On February 15th, Toby Hoover, Executive Director of the Ohio Coalition Against Gun Violence, talked on local ABC News about the tragic shootings at Northern Illinois University.
  • On New Year's Eve Arizonans for Gun Safety was very encouraged that calls about celebratory gunfire were down nearly one-third.   AZGS helped the police department run a poster campaign on the issue which involved families and children in the areas most affected by random gunfire.  The winning poster was put up on a billboard about the issue. Also, a press conference was held with the police and Lory Smith who worked with her husband Otis to have passed Shannon's Law which makes it a felong to shoot a gun into the air.  The law was named for their daughter who was killed in such a shooting.  Lory Smith died unexpectedly in January.  Her death is a terrible loss to the community and our thoughts are with her family and friends.  Her work on this issue will be a lasting inspiration to others.  An article in  The Arizona Republic talks movingly about the memorial service for Lory Smith.  Another article describes Lory's work and the work of AZGS on this issue.
  • On December 12th, the ABC I-Team released a report on gun shops right outside Chicago that sell guns to Chicagoans even though that city has a handgun ban.  Thom Mannard, ED of Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence, talked about the problem of the proximity of the gun shops to the city.
  • Jackie Kuhls, ED of New Yorkers Against Gun Violence, was quoted in a New York Sun article of December 10th about the questionnaire that the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition is asking Presidential candidates to fill out.  She commented," candidates tend to be asked about the rights of gun owners and the usefulness of guns, which she says misses the point."  The question is how to "keep guns out of prohibited hands," she said. "It's important for the public to understand whether the presidential candidates are going to take an issue like gun violence seriously."
  • The Executive Director of North Carolinians Against Gun Violence, Lisa Price, had a letter published in the Raleigh News & Observer on December 10, 2007 about the fact that mental health records are not computerized in that state and hence not uploaded to the NICS system used to do background checks on gun buyers.
  • Bryan Miller, ED of CeasefireNJ, has a new blog entry on the 2nd Amendment in response to the Supreme Court taking up the DC handgun ban case.
  • Ceasefire PA and its partners in the PATH Coalition held a march and press conference in Philadelphia on October 16th.  The march highlighted the problem of illegal guns and the death and injuries they cause.  The press conference called for the passage of two state bills - reporting lost and stolen guns and one gun a month to curb the flow of illegal guns to the streets.  The marchers were particularly mindful of the tragedies of gun injuries because of the recent shooting which left a young man paralyzed from the neck down. Local CBS News and many other news outlets reported on this. (Let the ad run and then you will see the video.)
  • The Akron Beacon Journal reported on a forum on October 10, 2007 at which Toby Hoover, Executive Director of the Ohio Coalition Against Gun Violence, spoke out about where young people, such as the shooter in the Cleveland school, get their guns.
  • A young man took a black powder rifle on to the campus of St. Johns's University in NYC on September 27th.  He was able to purchase this gun out of the city because it is considered an antique and is not covered by background check laws.  However, he knew he would not be able to buy it in NYC because of NYC's strict gun permit laws.  Jackie Kuhls of New Yorkers Against Gun Violence spoke about this on ABC local news.
  • On September 13, 2007, NJ Prosecutors and Ceasefire NJ held a press conference to highlight the problem of guns trafficked into NJ which are too easily purchased in Pennsylvania because of its lax laws.  TV stations such as local NBC and many newspapers carried the story.
  • As reported on WCSH TV, Maine Citizens Against Handgun Violence with the help of ProtestEasyGuns organized a 32 people lie-in on August 28, 2007 to highlight how easy access to guns cause devastation in this country.  August 28th was a national day of protest against illegal guns which was organized by the Rainbow Push Coalition and the Brady Campaign.
  • CeasefireNJ's Executive Director Bryan Miller has a relatively new blog on NJ.com.  His August 7, 2007 blog was a very moving piece about the Newark shootings and a call to get angry and get involved.
  • The Ravenna Record-Courier on July 24,2007 reports that Toby Hoover, Executive Director of the Ohio Coalition Against Gun Violence, speaks forcefully against a change in self defense laws for Ohio.
  • The Albany Times Union on July 11,2007 reports on a hearing about setting up a gun violence taskforce for the city of Albany.  Members of New Yorkers Against Gun Violence testify at the hearing.
  • An op ed piece in The Philadelphia Daily News on June 28, 2007 by Bryan Miller, Executive Director of CeasefireNJ, about state laws and the need to repeal the Tiahrt restrictions on ATF releasing crime gun trace data.
  • The Times May 21, 2007 article listed on NJ.com talks about the work of CeasefireNJ and its Executive Director, Bryan Miller, to get .50 caliber guns banned in New Jersey where there is a real concern that these guns could be used by terrorists against chemical plants.
  • Unfortunately, the terrible shootings at Virginia Tech meant that many of our state organizations wrote opinion pieces and were on news shows.  Here is an opinion piece in The Philadelphia Daily News   on April 25, 2007 from the new Board President  of CeasefirePA, Phil Goldmsith.
  • The President of the Board of Texans for Gun Safety, Linda Siemers, was quoted in an article on May 1, 2007 in the Dallas News about easing restrictions on where firearms can be carried legally in Texas.