For Immediate Release

Minnesota School Massacre – When Will We Learn?

March 22nd , 2005

Six Years After Columbine, Another School Shooting, Multiple Deaths and Injuries from Gunfire, Yet Nothing Done to Save Lives

Baltimore, MD: As the news of the shooting deaths of ten people and injuries to many more in a massacre at a high school in Red Lake, Minnesota spread across the country, Leah Barrett, Executive Director of CeaseFire Maryland (CFMD), the statewide group devoted to reducing gun violence said: “Like all Americans, our hearts go out to the families, neighbors, fellow students and coworkers who lost loved ones in yesterday’s terrible school shooting.”

“Yesterday’s school shooting in Red Lake, Minnesota was horrific, incredible saddening and will mark so many people with grief that will never end – but it was not a shock,” continued Barrett. “It has been nearly six years since the Columbine school massacre, and virtually nothing has been done in this country since then to avoid similar disasters. So, it is not a shock when these avoidable events happen again and again and people die, as occurred yesterday in Red Lake. And, unless we as a nation recognize that ‘it’s the guns, stupid,’ we can be absolutely certain that more such massacres will occur.”

Rebecca Thoman, Executive Director of Citizens for a Safer Minnesota, that state’s leading gun violence prevention organization said: “Unfortunately, we Americans haven't learned the lessons of Columbine and other mass school shootings. We continue to arm our homes with the misguided notion that guns will protect us and our families. The sad reality is just the opposite. A gun in the home is a risk to those we love.”

“Whenever a child uses a gun to kill, we have to ask: Where did he get the gun?” said Thoman. “EIGHTY PERCENT of the time the answer is from his own home or the home of a family member of friend.” News reports suggest that the Red Lake shooter used a shotgun and two handguns owned by his grandfather, who was also shot and killed.

Thoman continued: “Children will always have sadness, loss and conflict. But they needn't have guns. That is a society's choice. Parents: get handguns out of your homes. Hunters: securely lock your weapons and store your ammunition separately. Citizens: tell your lawmakers that enough is enough.”

Barrett closed by echoing Thoman’s remarks: “There are bullies in every country, but it is only in the United States that this leads to shooting rampages. It is not that America is a more violent country, there is ample data showing rates of crime and violence similar to other developed countries - we are just a more lethal country - because of the ease of access to and prevalence of firearms.”