As the new year begins, state lawmakers and officials will continue to grapple with how to prevent school shootings, like the one just two weeks ago in Madison.

While Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul has called for a "holistic approach" to prevent such incidents, gun violence prevention advocates said prevention starts with stronger gun laws.

Lindsay Nicols, policy director at the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, said the state could require universal background checks for gun purchases or raise the age for gun possession.

"We know that some of these shooters are young people themselves, and there are plenty of policies, for example, to keep guns out of the hands of youth," Nicols pointed out. "These are laws that some states have passed and some haven't, so we need action from our lawmakers to prevent, and protect our kids."

She noted other options are to pass a "red flag" law, or strengthen legislation on firearms storage. Giffords ranks states on a scorecard for their gun laws every year. Wisconsin most recently received a "C" grade.

Giffords' yearly analysis also compares states' gun laws with their fatal outcomes. Nicols emphasized time and again, they have found the stronger a state's gun laws, the lower its gun death rate, and the weaker the laws, the higher the gun death rate.

"We know that these gun laws work," Nicols contended. "There really is no reason why legislators shouldn't be taking action to prevent these tragedies."

While Wisconsin has enacted basic gun safety laws, she argued the state could also pass bans on assault weapons or high-capacity magazines or lengthen the waiting period for a firearms purchase. Despite public pressure for new gun safety laws in 2020, Wisconsin has not passed any significant gun legislation in years. Democrats have tried unsuccessfully to introduce at least 30 gun safety measures since 2019.


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Nearly 40% of guns used in Oregon homicides are illegally trafficked through legal gun dealers and another 30% are stolen from them, according to new research.

The report by the Alliance for a Safe Oregon highlights gaps in security, training and inspections among the state's 2,100 gun dealers. The report showed employees often lack training to detect "straw purchases," when someone buys a gun for another person who cannot legally own one.

Jess Marks, executive director of the alliance, said increasing state inspections, which now happen only every 10 years, could help reduce illegal gun trafficking.

"When we compare that to every other industry -- hair salons, nails, taco trucks, the cannabis industry -- that are inspected every six months, every two years," Marks pointed out. "We have got to be doing better."

The report said training employees to recognize straw gun sales, as well as upgrading gun dealers' storage and security measures, go a long way. Marks argued states with such policies in place, like New Jersey, have a 35% lower homicide rate.

The report found straw purchases and stolen firearms have fueled a significant rise in Oregon homicides, which have surged by 172% in the past decade. Marks emphasized most gun dealers are unaware when fraudulent purchases occur and stressed more regulations would protect ethical dealers.

"The vast majority, who are good dealers, they don't want other dealers allowing firearms going into, and showing up in, crimes," Marks pointed out.

The report blamed lax oversight, which allows Oregon gun dealers with repeated safety and security violations to operate without repercussions. Marks contended the solutions are common sense policies most people support.

"If we want to bring down our homicide rate, lower shootings, we've got to deal with the problem of illegal guns in our communities," Marks concluded.


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Gun violence has long been a pressing issue in Alabama, and the recent tragic shooting at Tuskegee University has reignited urgent calls for action.

Leading the response, Alabama Values, in partnership with The Flourish, brought together leaders, advocates, and community groups through their "Justice in Focus" initiative. The effort aims to reshape public safety by prioritizing prevention, equity, and community healing over traditional statistics-driven approaches.

Leroy Maxwell Jr., managing pertner of the Maxwell Tillman law firm, emphasized the need to revisit state policies on firearm access, noting that current laws make it too easy for dangerous weapons to circulate.

"Try to enact counter legislation that's reasonable and sensible," Maxwell urged. "The idea that someone in this state can have a silencer, where the only point of it is to sneak up behind someone and kill them, there's no sort of self-defense value to it."

The latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show Alabama had the 12th-highest gun death rate among Black people in the country in 2022. Advocates made clear legislative reform is just one part of the solution, emphasizing the need for smarter laws to reduce harm without creating unintended consequences.

Legislation, however, is only part of the puzzle.

Jacques Austin, a licensed counselor for the group Brother Let's Talk, said addressing emotional and mental health challenges is equally important. He explained how communities often struggle to process grief and conflict constructively, which can escalate tensions and violence over time.

"When emotions run high and there are no resources to help people process them like counseling or community education, communication can break down," Austin explained. "Instead of open, empathetic dialogue, people may communicate defensively or aggressively."

Uche Bean, director of community safety initiatives for the City of Birmingham, believes when it comes to addressing gun violence, creating safe communities starts with treating it as a public health crisis. She said breaking cycles of violence requires intentional investment in community.

"The comprehensive approach is not just focused on overall crime, it's community safety," Bean emphasized. "It is making sure that in every instance of these cycles of violence that we're providing support, resources and funding."

Bean added public safety is not just about enforcement, it is about intervening to stop violence before it starts.


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A new arts event, "Art of Democracy: Resiliency Impacted," is showcasing regional artists' work on democracy as the presidential election nears. The exhibition series highlights reproductive freedom, gun violence, and artists' roles in advocating for change. The show has partnered with CeaseFirePA.

Josh Fleitman, campaign director for CeaseFirePA, explains his organization focuses on state-level gun-violence prevention, while also supporting grassroots efforts to amplify citizens' voices.

"We work with a lot of community violence-intervention organizations, groups that do violence interruptions, street outreach work, hospital-based violence intervention work, groups that do work on the ground to prevent gun violence," he said. "We work with a lot of gun-violence survivors, and that's the event we're doing this week, is lifting up their stories."

Pennsylvania saw a 16% drop in homicides, compared with 13% nationally, with 29 of the state's 67 counties reporting declines. In September, Gov. Josh Shapiro signed an executive order re-establishing the Pennsylvania Office of Gun Violence Prevention within the state's Commission on Crime and Delinquency.

Rebecca Susman, communications and development director with Keystone Progress Education Fund, said the Art of Democracy exhibition series will explore what a healthy democracy looks like, encouraging broader discussions on the topic, in collaboration with Casey Droege Cultural Productions.

At the Resiliency Impacted event, she explained, Pennsylvanians will have the opportunity to register to vote before the deadline next Monday.

"The idea is both to bring awareness to issues and also to connect that with the importance of voting, and so at the shows, we have voter registration," Susman explained. "We have voter plan cards that people can fill out in order to ensure that you know whether they're voting in person. You know that they know where their polling location is."

Jillian Daniels, independent curator of the Resiliency Impacted exhibition, said it highlights the widespread effects of gun violence in Pennsylvania, including the city of Indiana. Her goal is to convey that lives lost to gun violence are preventable, regardless of political views. The exhibition centers on understanding the lives affected and the broader context of gun culture today.

"Come visit 'Resiliency Impacted' and really sit with the artwork and the calculable yet immeasurable loss of life, and how we can take proactive steps to demanding better from the folks that we have tasked in this electoral system with our safety and our notions of protection," she said.

Today from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. is the screening and discussion for "The Art of Democracy: Resiliency Impacted" at The Fox Clark Gallery in Indiana, Penn. The monthlong exhibition will be on display through Sunday. Another Art of Democracy exhibition is currently open at Brew House Arts in Pittsburgh through Nov. 2.