To the American People,

Our society faces a challenge. Gun violence brings tragedy to the lives of far too many people. More than 30,000 deaths and 100,000 injuries are caused by guns each year. The problem has reached epidemic proportions. As religious leaders, we have seen the results of these tragedies. It is imperative for us to do what we can to avoid these incidents.

We do not speak in terms of fault or moral blame. However, the gun industry has the opportunity to reduce the tragedies and bloodshed. We call upon them to make changes that will increase safety, keep guns away from criminals and our children, and put safety devices in their products that will cut down on accidental and unintended deaths and injuries.

The tragedy of gun violence was created and is continued by people. Because this is a disaster of our making, we have the power to change it. We have multiple federal agencies spending millions of dollars to detect and help protect our people against natural disasters-and that is as it should be. Yet when it comes to the societal disaster of gun violence we have exempted these products from the oversight of the Consumer Product Safety Commission and all of the relevant regulations that govern the manufacture of consumer goods. This does not make sense.

We need common-sense reform of the gun industry. Limiting the distribution of guns to responsible law-abiding citizens, not criminals, and cutting off gun dealers that repeatedly sell guns used in crime are good steps. We also demand an end to the practice of advertising to criminals and children. Ads boasting of guns' fingerprint-resistance and other features related to crime rather than sport or self-defense only encourage the armament of criminals. Ads in children's periodicals and ads depicting children firing guns must not continue in the wake of bloodshed in our schools. And designing the safest guns possible is critical in our struggle to cut down on gun-related death.

We support the present efforts of the Clinton Administration-and in particular the Department of Housing and Urban Development-to bring needed change to the gun industry. We urge the Administration and elected officials to continue to press the gun industry to make common-sense changes addressing the problem of gun violence. We exhort the gun industry to examine its own practices and develop solutions that will truly change the status quo. We also urge the Congress to pass common-sense gun legislation to protect all Americans from gun violence.

The problem has gone on for far too long. In the beginning of a new millennium, let us make changes that transcend the divisive rhetoric surrounding this issue and results in safer lives for our communities and our families. As religious leaders representing several faiths and spiritual traditions, we say with Thich Nhat Hahn, Zen Buddhist monk, scholar and activist, "Do not kill. Do not let others kill. Find whatever means possible to protect life and prevent war." We say with Isaiah, "They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks." (Isaiah 2:4) And we say with Paul in a spirit of dogged persistence and of hope, "we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience." (Romans 5:3)

Sincerely,

National Groups

• American Baptist Churches USA
• American Ethical Union
• American Friends Service Committee
• American Jewish Committee
• American Jewish Congress
• Center of Concern
• Church of the Brethren
• Columbian Fathers
• The Congress of National Black Churches
• The Episcopal Church
• Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
• The Interfaith Alliance
• ITC Faith Works
• Jack Berman Advocacy Center of the American Jewish Congress
• Jewish Council for Public Affairs
• Jewish Women International
• Leadership Conference of Women Religious
• National Ten Point Leadership Foundation
• NETWORK
• McAuley Institute
• National Council of Churches
• National Council of Jewish Women
• Presbyterian Church U.S.A.
• The Rabbinical Assembly
• Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism
• Sojourners
• United Church of Christ
• United Methodist Church
• Union of American Hebrew Congregations
• Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations
• United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism
• Women of Reform Judaism

State & Local Groups

• Alleluia House - Mannington, WV
• Allen African Methodist Episcopal Church - Jamaica, NY
• Catholic Community Services, Diocese of Wheeling - Charleston, WV
• Christian Reformed Church - Washington, D.C.
• Black Church Initiative - Washington, DC
• Habitat for Humanity of Washington DC - Washington, DC
• Interfaith Housing Association - Westport, CT
• Lutheran Social Services of the National Capital Area - Arlington, VA
• Manna, Inc. - Washington, DC
• Miguel Pro Jesuit Community - Denver, CO
• Roman Catholic Diocese of Colorado Springs - Colorado Springs, CO
• Roman Catholic Diocese of Galveston Houston - Houston, TX
• Roman Catholic Diocese of Pueblo - Pueblo, CO
• Roman Catholic Diocese of Richmond - Richmond, VA
• Sisters of St. Joseph of Wheeling - Wheeling, WV
• St. Gertrude Parish - Chicago, IL
• United Jewish Federation of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh, PA
• Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy - Richmond, VA
• Washington, D.C. Christian Reformed Church - Washington, DC

Individuals

• Rev. Frank Almade, Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh, PA
• Bob Bates, Shiloh Baptist Church, Washington, DC
• Rev. Marianne M. Bird, United Methodist Church, Roanoke, VA
• Raymond S. Blanks, Emmaus Consulting Group, Washington, DC
• David Brock, RLDS Church, Independence, MD
• Rev. Matthew H. Calkins, Westport, CT
• Stephen J. Callahan, Catholic Campaign for Human Development, U.S. Catholic Conference
• Rev. Ronald D. Channell, St. Margaret of Scotland Catholic Church, St. Clair Shores, MI
• Fred Clark, PRISM Magazine, Philadelpia, PA
• Chad Collins, Mt. Hope Community Church, Pittsburgh, PA
• Johanna Collins, Eastminster Presbyterian Church, Pittsburgh, PA
• Robert B. Coleman, Edgehill United Methodist Church, Nashville, TN
• Rev. James Conroy, S.J., Rector, Gonzaga H.S./S.J., Aloysius Parish Jesuit Community
• Rev. Gerry Creedon, Pastor, St. Charles Borromeo Parish, Arlington, VA
• Charles W. Dahm, St. Pius V Parish, Chicago, IL
• Janet DeYoung, Good Samaritan Ministries, Holland, MI
• Rev. Robert Drinan, S.J., Georgetown University Law School, Washington, D.C.
• Rev. Dr. Jim Dunn, Visiting Professor of Christianity and Public Policy, Wake Forest University
• Sister Patricia Eeckhout, cdp, Sisters of Divine Providence, Roseville, MI
• Kristin Fox, Metropolitan Inter-Faith Association, Memphis, TN
• Fran Frazier, Women's Work as a Ministry
• Todd Garland, Chair, Catholic Committee of Appalachia, Webster Springs, WV
• John Hannigan, Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
• Jane Hull Harvey, Assistant General Secretary, United Methodist Church, Washington, DC
• Rev. Dr. Roy A. Hassell, Westport United Methodist Church
• Stan Hastey, Alliance of Baptists, Washington, DC
• Pat Hatch, First Presbyterian Church, Columbia, MD
• Rev. Joseph Hayden, S.J., Jesuit Community at Wheeling University, Wheeling, WV
• Rev. Otto Hentz, S.J., Georgetown University, Washington, DC
• Nathan Hill, Memphis Leadership Foundation, Memphis, TN
• Kevin Hickey, Policy Director, Catholic Charities of Memphis, Memphis, TN
• Pete Hokky, Catholic Diocese of Juneau, Juneau, AK
• Ron Jackson, D.C. Catholic Conference, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington, DC
• Beatrice Jefferson, Georgia Avenue Collaborative, Washington, D.C.
• Anne Hale Johnson, Presbyterian Women, Union Theological Seminary, Washington, DC
• Reverend Wilbert B. Johnson, Just Blessed Baptist Church, Clayton, NC
• Rev. Walter L. Kimbrough, Pastor, Cascade United Methodist Church, Atlanta, GA
• Rev. Edward Kinerk, S.J., Rockhurst University, Kansas City, MO
• Kristyn A. Komarniki, Evangelicals for Social Action, Philadelphia, PA
• Marigrace Komarnicki, Call to Renewal, Radnor, PA
• Andrew Kwong, First Evangelical Church Association, South Pasadena, CA
• Eve LaMois, Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church, Alexandria, VA
• Douglas M. Lawson, Catholic Campaign for Human Development, U.S. Catholic Conference
• Daric Lee, First Evangelical Church Association, Alhambra, CA
• Rev. Tracy Leggins, New Philadelphia A.M.E. Church, Carson, CA
• Daniel Lizarraga, National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB), Secretariat for Latin America
• Rev. Gaspar Lo Biondo, S.J., Senior Fellow, Woodstock Theological Center, Georgetown University, Washington, DC
• Antonio LuJan, Catholic Diocese of Las Cruces, Director, Office of Justice and Peace, Las Cruces, NM
• Rev. Steven W. Manskar, General Board of Discipleship of the United Methodist Church, Nashville, TN
• Sister Kathleen Matz, cdp, Sisters of Divine Providence, Roseville, MI
• Jocele McEnany, Director, Peace and Justice, Roman Catholic Diocese of Kansas City, Kansas City, MO
• Kathy McKinley-Goodrich, St. Margaret Christian Service Commission
• Joan McLellen, Hunger Committee NCP, Alexandria, VA
• Sister Kathleen O'Hagan, Sisters of Notre Dame, Naugatuch, WV
• Brian O'Malley, Executive Director, Catholic Charities, Memphis, TN
• Sister Helen Prejean, c.s.j., Author of Dead Man Walking, New Orleans, LA
• Sister Gretchen Shaffer, Sisters of St. Joseph, Naugatuch, WV
• Wayne Upton, Shiloh Baptist Church, Washington, DC
• Lydia Villanueva, The Promised Land Network, Roman Catholic Diocese of Amarillo, Amarillo, TX
• Carol Warren, Justice and Life Office, Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston, Charleston, WV
• Joanne Welter, Justice and Peace Office, Diocese of Tucson, Tuscon, AZ
• Margaret White, Dorchester Temple Baptist, Cambridge, MA
• Paul J. Yasenak, C.S.S.R., Redemptorist of Denver Province, Hamtramck, MI