() Comments
Council to decide NRA book issue Vote on kids' gun-safety tool set for tonight
By Robert Gutsche Jr
RACINE - The Racine City Council will decide tonight whether the Police Department can use hundreds of coloring books that have images of guns to teach gun-safety to children.
Alderman Pete Karas says he opposes the Police Department's request to get free coloring books from the National Rifle Association because the books could be harmful because of the images of guns.
"Here we are having children coloring guns," Karas said. "I don't know how they can be good for children."
He also said the books don't come with enough lessons for adults and puts the responsibility of gun safety on children, not parents.
Karas said some independent studies of the program show children can repeat the gun safety messages through words, but fail to reproduce them in role-playing games. This, he said, means the program could work only as an early introduction to guns and could lead to youth violence or
suicide.
"It teaches gun safety and it's helped 18 million school children across the country," Helding said. "Those numbers come from the NRA, but I am sure they are legitimate. If they are driving kids to suicide or gun violence in mass numbers we'd know about it."
Last week, the city's Finance and Personnel Committee voted 4-0 to deny the Police Department's request for the books, while the License and Welfare Committee approved the request 3-2.
Those votes could signal the council's decision tonight. "I'm confident based on the committee votes that the approval will be rejected," Karas said.
If the measure is rejected, said Helding, "it would be a victory of emotion over common sense."
Special Offer: Get 5 Weeks of the Journal Times for $7!
|
 |
|
| Stepp won't seek re-election | Museum's struggle saddened Kornwolf |
