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Mass Shootings and Gun Laws: Canada Does What America Won’t Do

NNPA NEWSWIRE — As of May 18, 2022, individuals and businesses transferring or selling a non-restricted firearm in Canada need to confirm the recipient’s identity and check the validity of their gun license with the Registrar of Firearms before completing the transfer, including by providing the recipient’s license number and any other information requested. Canadian officials said the new rule would help prevent people who cannot have a firearm from getting one.
The post Mass Shootings and Gun Laws: Canada Does What America Won’t Do first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

Published

2 years ago

June 7, 2022

Oakland Post

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent
@StacyBrownMedia

According to the Gun Violence Archive, 2022 has quickly become the year of Mass Shootings.

Researchers, who label mass shootings as incidents where four or more people are injured or killed (not including the shooter), noted that there have already been more than 231 mass shootings this year in the United States.

With an average of more than one mass shooting per day, there hasn’t been a week in 2022 without at least one incident.

While America’s lawmakers grapple with deep ties to the National Rifle Association and a reluctance to do much about the gun violence crisis that most recently resulted in the deaths of small children in Uvalde, Texas, and senior citizens at a supermarket in Buffalo, Canada has provided the blueprint to stop mass shootings.

As of May 1, 2020, the government north of the border said it has prohibited over 1,500 models of assault-style firearms and specific components of some newly prohibited firearms – including AR-15 and M4 weapons.

To help accomplish that, lawmakers provided a criminal code amnesty period that remains in effect until October 2023. The government designed the amnesty period to “protect individuals or businesses who, at the time the prohibition came into force, were in lawful possession of a newly prohibited firearm from criminal liability while they take steps to comply with the law.”

Canada’s Minister of Public Safety, the Honorable Marco Mendicino, announced new and more stringent rules governing the sale or transfer of non-restricted firearms.

As of May 18, 2022, individuals and businesses transferring or selling a non-restricted firearm need to confirm the recipient’s identity and check the validity of their gun license with the Registrar of Firearms before completing the transfer, including by providing the recipient’s license number and any other information requested.

Canadian officials said the new rule would help prevent people who cannot have a firearm from getting one.

Further, firearms businesses must retain sales and inventory records related to non-restricted firearms.

“This will make it easier for law enforcement to trace crime guns. In addition, the records will be held by businesses — not the government — and the police will need reasonable grounds to get access to them, often with judicial authorization,” Mendicino said.

“We are taking action to keep Canadians safe from gun violence. To that end, we are bringing common-sense regulations that strengthen public safety through validated ownership, transparent business records keeping, and license verification before purchasing a firearm,” the public safety minister asserted.

“Today’s regulations will help ensure that firearms do not end up in the wrong hands, assist police in tracing guns used in a crime, and are part of the broader strategy to keep communities safe.”

Meanwhile, in America, the New York Times reported that mass shootings come against a worsening adolescent mental health crisis, one that predated the pandemic but intensified by Covid.

“Much of the despair among teenagers and young adults has been inwardly directed, with soaring rates of self-harm and suicide,” the newspaper reported.

“In that sense, the perpetrators of mass shootings represent an extreme minority of young people, but one that nonetheless exemplifies broader trends of loneliness, hopelessness and the darker side of a culture saturated by social media and violent content.”

In recounting mass shootings in America, the Times noted that, in addition to Buffalo and Uvalde, there was a mass shooting at a supermarket in Boulder, Colo., in March 2021 that the police said was carried out by a 21-year-old man.

There’s also the massacre by a 21-year-old gunman targeting Hispanic shoppers at a Walmart in El Paso in August 2019 that resulted in 23 deaths.

Additionally, a 17-year-old student in Santa Fe, Texas, stood accused of shooting and killing eight students and two teachers in May 2018.

At Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., in February 2018, a 19-year-old former student killed 17 people.

Reportedly, only two of the 30 deadliest mass shootings recorded from 1949 to 2017 involved shooters younger than 21: The first was the massacre of 13 people by two teenagers at Columbine High School in 1999, and the second came when a 20-year-old killed 27 people, most of them children, at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., in 2012.

“How much more carnage are we willing to accept?” President Joe Biden pleaded as he asked Congress to produce and move new gun laws.

“Enough is enough,” Biden declared. “Don’t tell me raising the age won’t make a difference.”

The President said he wants Congress to restore bans on selling assault-style weapons with high-capacity magazines, or what Canada and its two-party government system have done.

“Much of the gap in how these two countries handle contentious policy questions comes down to something that can feel invisible amid day-to-day politicking, but maybe just as important as the issues themselves: the structures of their political systems,” Journalist Max Fisher wrote for the New York Times.

Fisher noted that Canada operates under a parliamentary system. Its head of government, Justin Trudeau, is elevated to that job by the legislature, of which he is also a member, and which his party, in collaboration with another, controls.

“If Mr. Trudeau wants to pass a new law, he must merely ask his subordinates in his party and their allies to do it,” Fisher wrote.

“There is no such thing as divided government and less cross-party horse-trading and legislative gridlock.”

The post Mass Shootings and Gun Laws: Canada Does What America Won’t Do first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

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IN MEMORIAM: Ramona Edelin, Influential Activist and Education Advocate, Dies at 78

NNPA NEWSWIRE — Born on September 4, 1945, in Los Angeles, California, activist Ramona Edelin’s early years were marked by a commitment to education and social justice. According to her HistoryMakers biography, after graduating from Fisk University with a Bachelor’s degree in 1967, she pursued further studies at the University of East Anglia in England. She earned her master’s degree before completing her Ph.D. at Boston University in 1981.
The post IN MEMORIAM: Ramona Edelin, Influential Activist and Education Advocate, Dies at 78 first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

Published

4 weeks ago

April 3, 2024

Stacy M. Brown

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent
@StacyBrownMedia

Once upon a time, Black Americans were simply known as colored people, or Negroes. That is until Ramona Edelin came along. The activist, renowned for her pivotal roles in advancing civil rights, education reform, and community empowerment, died at her D.C. residence last month at the age of 78. Her death, finally confirmed this week by Barnaby Towns, a communications strategist who collaborated with Dr. Edelin, was attributed to cancer.

Born on September 4, 1945, in Los Angeles, California, Edelin’s early years were marked by a commitment to education and social justice. According to her HistoryMakers biography, after graduating from Fisk University with a Bachelor’s degree in 1967, she pursued further studies at the University of East Anglia in England. She earned her master’s degree before completing her Ph.D. at Boston University in 1981.

Edelin’s contributions to academia and activism were manifold. She was pivotal in popularizing the term “African American” alongside Rev. Jesse L. Jackson in the late 1980s.

Jackson had announced the preference for “African American,” speaking for summit organizers that included Dr. Edelin. “Just as we were called Colored, but were not that, and then Negro, but not that, to be called Black is just as baseless,” he said, adding that “African American” “has cultural integrity” and “puts us in our proper historical context.”

Later, Edelin told Ebony magazine, “Calling ourselves African Americans is the first step in the cultural offensive,” while linking the name change to a “cultural renaissance” in which Black Americans reconnected with their history and heritage.

“Who are we if we don’t acknowledge our motherland?” she asked later. “When a child in a ghetto calls himself African American, immediately he’s international. You’ve taken him from the ghetto and put him on the globe.”

The HistoryMakers bio noted that Edelin’s academic pursuits led her to found and chair the Department of African American Studies at Northeastern University, where she established herself as a leading voice.

Transitioning from academia to advocacy, Edelin joined the National Urban Coalition in 1977, eventually ascending to president and CEO. During her tenure, she spearheaded initiatives such as the “Say Yes to a Youngster’s Future” program, which provided crucial support in math, science, and technology to youth and teachers of color in urban areas. Her biography noted that Edelin’s efforts extended nationwide through partnerships with organizations like the National Science Foundation and the United States Department of Education.

President Bill Clinton recognized Edelin’s expertise by appointing her to the Presidential Board on Historically Black Colleges and Universities in 1998. She also co-founded and served as treasurer of the Black Leadership Forum, solidifying her standing as a respected leader in African American communities.

Beyond her professional achievements, Edelin dedicated herself to numerous boards and committees, including chairing the District of Columbia Educational Goals 2000 Panel and contributing to the Federal Advisory Committee for the Black Community Crusade for Children.

Throughout her life, Edelin received widespread recognition for her contributions. Ebony magazine honored her as one of the 100 Most Influential Black Americans, and she received prestigious awards such as the Southern Christian Leadership Award for Progressive Leadership and the IBM Community Executive Program Award.

The post IN MEMORIAM: Ramona Edelin, Influential Activist and Education Advocate, Dies at 78 first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

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Tennessee State University Board Disbanded by MAGA Loyalists as Assault on DE&I Continues

NNPA NEWSWIRE — Recent legislative actions in Tennessee, such as repealing police reform measures enacted after the killing of Tyre Nichols, underscore a troubling trend of undermining local control and perpetuating racist agendas. The new law preventing local governments from restricting police officers’ authority disregards community efforts to address systemic issues of police violence and racial profiling.
The post Tennessee State University Board Disbanded by MAGA Loyalists as Assault on DE&I Continues first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

Published

4 weeks ago

April 3, 2024

Stacy M. Brown

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent
@StacyBrownMedia

Tennessee State University (TSU), the state’s only public historically Black college and university (HBCU), faces a tumultuous future as Gov. Bill Lee dissolved its board, a move supported by racist conservatives and MAGA Republicans in the Tennessee General Assembly, who follow the lead of the twice-impeached, four-times indicted, alleged sexual predator former President Donald Trump. Educators and others have denounced the move as an attack on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) and a grave setback for higher education.

Critics argue that TSU’s purported financial mismanagement is a manufactured crisis rooted in decades of underinvestment by the state government. They’ve noted that it continues a trend by conservatives and the racist MAGA movement to eliminate opportunities for Blacks in education, corporate America, and the public sector.

Gevin Reynolds, a former speechwriter for Vice President Kamala Harris, emphasizes in an op-ed that TSU’s financial difficulties are not the result of university leadership because a recent audit found no evidence of fraud or malfeasance.

Reynolds noted that the disbanding of TSU’s board is not an isolated incident but part of a broader assault on DE&I initiatives nationwide. Ten states, including Tennessee, have enacted laws banning DE&I policies on college campuses, while governors appointing MAGA loyalists to university trustee positions further undermine efforts to promote inclusivity and equality.

Moreover, recent legislative actions in Tennessee, such as repealing police reform measures enacted after the killing of Tyre Nichols, underscore a troubling trend of undermining local control and perpetuating racist agendas. The new law preventing local governments from restricting police officers’ authority disregards community efforts to address systemic issues of police violence and racial profiling.

The actions echo historical efforts to suppress Black progress, reminiscent of the violent backlash against gains made during the Reconstruction era. President Joe Biden warned during an appearance in New York last month that Trump desires to bring the nation back to the 18th and 19th centuries – in other words, to see, among other things, African Americans back in the chains of slavery, women subservient to men without any say over their bodies, and all voting rights restricted to white men.

The parallels are stark, with white supremacist ideologies used to justify attacks on Black institutions and disenfranchise marginalized communities, Reynolds argued.

In response to these challenges, advocates stress the urgency of collective action to defend democracy and combat systemic racism. Understanding that attacks on institutions like TSU are symptomatic of broader threats to democratic norms, they call for increased civic engagement and voting at all levels of government.

The actions of people dedicated to upholding the principles of inclusivity, equity, and justice for all will determine the outcome of the ongoing fight for democracy, Reynolds noted. “We are in a war for our democracy, one whose outcome will be determined by every line on every ballot at every precinct,” he stated.

The post Tennessee State University Board Disbanded by MAGA Loyalists as Assault on DE&I Continues first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

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Braxton Haulcy and the Expansion of Walker|West Music Academy

May 24, 2023 – Walker West Music Academy gets an early start on expansion. Join us for a Wednesday episode of The …
The post Braxton Haulcy and the Expansion of Walker|West Music Academy first appeared on BlackPressUSA.