In a positive, pro-gun reaction to
the spate of American school shootings,
a senior citizens’ group is offering
a “safe schools initiative,â€
based on an Israeli model.
The Dallas-based group, Seniors
United Supporting the Second
Amendment (SUSSA), will offer
scholarships for courses in handgun
safety and the use of guns in defensive
situations to five volunteers selected
by the first public school in
the United States that adopts the
Israeli model for protecting the
school from violence, says John
Bender, Executive Director of
SUSSA.
In 1974, reports the Cybercast
News Service, Israel began arming
parents and grandparents who volunteered
to patrol local schools.
Israeli officials say since the program
was implemented, no child
has been killed in a school. Some
Israeli schools continue to use
armed parent and grandparent patrols,
while other schools have hired
armed guards for protection.
If the Israeli program had been in
place in the United States, says
SUSSA, recent shootings, including
two in California, might not have
happened. “SUSSA urges every
school in America to implement the
Israeli safety program before there
is another school shooting,†the
group said.
“We want to make our schools
safe and stop the killings,†said
Bender. “By adopting the Israeli
model we can stop the tragic school
shooting and protect our constitutional
right to own and carry firearms.â€
Jim Martin, President of another
senior citizens’ group, the
60-Plus Association, endorsed
the idea. “Clearly,†he said, “it
would be beneficial to all students
to have senior citizens,
parents and grandparents patrolling
the schools. This would be a
good use of citizen know-how
and manpower.â€
In Texas, State Rep. Suzanna
Gratia Hupp of Lampasas, a
CCRKBA Gun Rights Defender of
the Month Awardee, has proposed
legislation that would allow
superintendents and principals
in rural Texas districts to
carry concealed weapons on
school property. The bill, H.B.
2353, would apply only to officials
with concealed carry licenses
in counties with fewer
than 20,000 people. The proposal
is designed to provide security
measures for rural schools
that cannot afford to implement
more common means such as
security guards and metal detectors.
In Annapolis, Maryland, it appeared
likely as of this writing
that the state legislature would
enact and the governor would
sign into law a proposal mandating
gun safety education in all
public schools.
In Washington, D. C., Sen. Robert
Torricelli of New Jersey introduced
S. 609, the proposed Gun Parts
Trafficking Act of 2001.
“This bill is designed to close the
loopholes in existing law and end
the sale of kits designed to convert
legally owned firearms into illegal
automatic weapons,†said Torricelli.
“It will expand the definition of
‘firearm’ to include the main components
of the weapon and will prohibit
the manufacture of assembly of
guns by an individual who does not
have a license to do so.â€
The measure has been referred to
the Senate Committee on the Judiciary
