NCJ Number
159598
Date Published
1994
Length
0 pages
Annotation
This adaptation of a Phil Donahue program from January 19, 1994 discusses the issue of handgun violence among black communities and in the United States as a whole with Reverend Jesse Jackson, researchers, victims of handgun violence, and family members of persons murdered using handguns.
Abstract
The speakers note that handgun deaths are the second leading cause of death among black youth and that handgun murders and accidental deaths are the major health emergency in the country. Comparative statistics are presented revealing that the United States experiences more than 10,000 handgun deaths each year, compared to less than 100 in various European countries. Panelists assert that the main causes of handgun fatalities are easy access to guns, the mass media portrayals of the use of guns, and the public attitude that handgun violence is a problem of the inner cities rather than of the United States as a whole. Speakers also argue that current controls, especially the questionnaires that gun dealers must use with their customers, are inadequate for preventing the sales of handguns to felons and drug addicts. Reverend Jackson advocates a program to buy, ban, and burn guns. The speakers respond to audience and telephone caller questions and comments.