Posted: 6/17/2005 3:47:21 PM EDT
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NATIONAL GROUPS ANNOUNCE COALITION TO FIGHT GUN LAW REPEAL Democracy Defenders to Hutchison: "Don't Tread on DC" WASHINGTON - Advocacy organizations with hundreds of thousands of members across the country today announced the formation of a coalition to defend the rights of residents of the District of Columbia to establish their city's gun laws. "If members of Congress think they can score easy political points with the gun lobby at the expense of democracy in DC, they can think again," said Josh Horwitz, a spokesman for the new group, the National Coalition for DC Democracy and Safety. "Lawmakers who support stripping DC voters of the power to pass gun laws should know we're going to make sure voters back home hear about this pathetic political stunt," Horwitz said. "We intend to send a message - don't tread on DC." Members of the group include Alliance for Justice, the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence, Common Cause, the DC Democracy Fund, DC Vote, the DC chapter of the Million Mom March, and Physicians for Social Responsibility. Other organizations will be added over the next few weeks. "These organizations can reach out to huge numbers of people in any state in the country, and together we can communicate the importance of this issue to citizens far beyond the Beltway," Horwitz said. Sens. Kay Bailey Hutchison and John Cornyn, both Texas Republicans, last month introduced the so-called "District of Columbia Personal Protection Act of 2005," which would repeal the city's gun laws, in the Senate. Last September, the U.S. House passed an earlier version of the bill, introduced by Reps. Mark Souder (R-Ind.) and Mike Ross (D-Ark.), on a 250-171 vote, but the Senate did not act on the proposal. Souder and Ross reintroduced the House bill in March. "The names of the people pushing to repeal Washington's gun laws have never appeared on a ballot in the District of Columbia, yet they feel free to tell DC what to do," Horwitz said. "Supporting this bill is a little like hunting for big game at National Zoo - it's a gutless way to take a shot when you know your opponent can't bite back. We intend to show members of Congress that their constituents aren't impressed." ### The Coalition to Stop Gun Violence was founded in 1975 and is composed of 45 civic, professional and religious organizations and 100,000 individual members working to reduce gun violence. Our mission is to stop gun violence by fostering effective community and national action. For more information about the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence, visit www.csgv.org. |