Label
Council Members Gadus, Komives and Melden
Title
Declaring the first Friday in June to be National Gun Violence Awareness Day in the City of Toledo; and declaring an emergency.
Summary
WHEREAS, every day, more than 120 Americans are killed by gun violence and more than 200 are shot and wounded, with an average of more than 17,000 gun homicides every year; and
WHEREAS, Americans are 26 times more likely to die by gun homicide than people in other high-income countries; and
WHEREAS, Ohio has 1,911 gun deaths every year, with a rate of 16.5 deaths per 100,000 people, a crisis that costs the state $22.3 billion each year, of which $493.7 million is paid by taxpayers. Ohio has the 27th highest rate of gun deaths in the US; and
WHEREAS, gun homicides and assaults are concentrated in cities, with more than half of all firearm related gun deaths in the nation occurring in 127 cities; and
WHEREAS, cities across the nation, including in Toledo, are working to end the senseless violence with evidence-based solutions; and
WHEREAS, protecting public safety in the communities they serve is mayors' highest responsibility; and
WHEREAS, support for the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens goes hand-in-hand with keeping guns away from people with dangerous histories; and
WHEREAS, mayors and law enforcement officers -in partnership with local violence intervention activists and resources -know their communities best, are the most familiar with local criminal activity and how to address it, and are best positioned to understand how to keep their citizens safe; and
WHEREAS, gun violence prevention is more important than ever as we see an increase in firearm homicides, and nonfatal shootings across the country, increased calls to domestic violence hotlines, and an increase in city gun violence; and
WHEREAS, in January 2013, Hadiya Pendleton was tragically shot and killed at age 15; and on June 2,...
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