NEWTOWN, Conn. – Today marks the third anniversary of the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.
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There will be an increased police presence at Fairfield schools Monday because of the anniversary of the Sandy Hook school shooting.
They are commemorating the 3rd anniversary of the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting where 20 students and six adult staff members were killed.
The Sandy Hook shooting has served as a rallying cry for gun control activists, who have faced stiff resistance from the gun lobby and Republican lawmakers.
The noise of the gunshot and breaking glass caught the attention of the school principal Dawn Hochsprung and school psychologist Mary Sherlach.
Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy last week said his state planned to ban sales of firearms to people designated on US lists as having suspected ties to terrorism or who are banned from flying on commercial aircraft.
The gunman opened fire on December 14, 2012.
“Faith leaders from the various Newtown religious communities will guide the community by reading from our sacred texts, offering prayers for our community and allowing for times of silence for each individual to reflect and/or pray in his or her own way”, the Rev. Matt Crebbin of Newtown Congregational Church said of the event. Three years later, the gun debate continues with these issues still being the main points of any new laws.
So, if anyone tells you nothing can be done about gun violence, let them know how much has been achieved in just three years. Kansas, Georgia, Tennessee and Arkansas have expanded their conceal-and-carry laws, and while six states have instituted more in-depth background checks, others have “passed reciprocity agreements recognizing gun permits approved by other states, reduced permitting fees and loosened requirements”, making guns easier to acquire.
Newtown recovery centers are also providing quiet spaces and therapeutic programs to support grieving community members. He is writing a book called Sacred Testimony on the narrative of what happened, why and the search for solutions.
The US Justice Department reports that gun violence over the past twenty years has gone down since a high in 1993. Monday is also the first time the anniversary falls on a school day.
“We support the Second Amendment”, said Donna Schmidt, one of the group’s Dallas organizers.
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Eric Fleegler, a doctor at Boston Children’s Hospital who has studied state gun laws, said he worries that the expansion of gun rights could cause more fights to escalate into deadly confrontations, more people to commit suicide and more kids to die from gun accidents.
