College presidents around the country called for stricter gun controls after the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School that left 20 children dead.
A letter written to the Congress urged on implementing a ban on semiautomatic assault weapons & high-capacity ammunition magazines; stringent consumer safety standards and a compulsory background check for people who purchase firearms from unlicensed sellers at gun shows, Bangor Daily News reported.
An excerpt from the letter:
"For many years now, our nation's leaders have engaged in fevered debates on higher education, yet lawmakers shy away from taking action on one issue that prevents thousands of young people from living lives of promise, let alone realizing their college dreams,"
This letter was signed by presidents from 300 colleges.
"I was moved, as many of the other signers were moved by the Dec. 14 slayings at Sandy Hook Elementary. It's probably time to make a statement - and time to declare ourselves as concerned. It's not a random issue. It's one that goes right to the heart of things we think about on our campuses," Kenneth Ruscio, President of Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Va., told the newspaper.
Echoing the same sentiment was another letter by Emerson College in Massachusetts that showcased around 200 signatures. It pledged to conduct campus discussions on gun violence.
The Association of American Universities, which includes 60 U.S. universities and two Canadian research universities, believes that it's time for the federal government to make/change laws and reduce violence perpetrated by guns.
In a statement issued by the association on Jan.3, it said - "As leaders of public and private universities, we strongly urge the President and the Congress to seek effective means of mitigating this scourge of American life."
Also, they said that state laws make it all the more difficult for the management to keep guns off campus and from the students too.
