Backgrounder on the Manufacturer
of the Gun Reportedly Used in the Alleged Shooting by Nathaniel Brazill
at Lake Worth Middle School in Lake Worth, Florida
VPC Joined by Members
of Congressional Hispanic Caucus, Leading Hispanic Organizations
Washington, DC�The Violence Policy Center (VPC) today released Hispanics
and Firearms Violence, a comprehensive overview of the effects
of gun violence on Hispanic communities on both the national and regional
levels. Joining the VPC at a Capitol Hill press conference were U.S. Representatives
Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA), Grace Napolitano (D-CA), and Hilda Solis
(D-CA), as well as representatives of leading national Hispanic organizations.
The 23-page VPC study presents all available information from national
sources analyzing Hispanics and firearms, including information on homicides,
domestic violence, nonfatal firearm injuries, and suicides. The study
also analyzes information from three geographic regions with large Hispanic
populations and uniquely comprehensive data: the states of California
and Texas, and the city of Chicago.
Karen Brock, MPH, VPC health policy analyst and study author, states,
"Gun violence has a devastating effect on Hispanic communities throughout
our nation. This study is a first step in helping reveal these problems
and identifying long-needed solutions."
The study, with numerous full color charts, is available in both English
and Spanish and is available on the VPC's web site located at www.vpc.org.
Among the study's findings�
-
Although Americans of Hispanic ethnicity are disproportionately affected
by gun violence when compared to the nation as a whole, because of severe
limitations in data-gathering systems, the full scale of gun violence
on Hispanic communities is rarely discussed.
- Only
11 percent of Hispanics own guns, compared to 16 percent of blacks and
27 percent of whites. Yet Hispanics are murdered with firearms at rates
second only to blacks.
- Firearms
homicide is the leading cause of gun death for Hispanics.
- In
1997, the total firearm injury rate (both fatal and nonfatal) for Hispanics
was nearly three times higher than the rate for whites.
- In
California, in 1998, handguns were used in 70 percent of all Hispanic
homicides.
- In
Texas, in 1998, nearly 15 percent of Hispanic gun homicide victims were
18 years of age or younger.
- In
Chicago, a 29-year study revealed that guns were used in 62.6 percent
of Hispanic-on-Hispanic intimate partner homicides, the highest usage
among all intra-racial intimate partner homicides.
- The
gun industry, stating that it "must become less racist to survive in
the 21st century," has targeted Hispanics, and other racial minorities
as a "largely untapped market."
Representative
Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA) states, "The Violence Policy Center's report
makes it clear that policies to enhance gun control and to educate the
public about gun violence in this country must include the Latino community.
As Latinos become the majority in key areas of our country, the adverse
impact of gun violence and the resulting loss of human potential in the
Hispanic community will affect the future of our entire nation."
The Violence Policy Center is a
national non-profit educational foundation that conducts research on violence
in America and works to develop violence-reduction policies and proposals.
The Center examines the role of firearms in America, conducts research
on firearms violence, and explores new ways to decrease firearm-related
death and injury.
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For Release:
Tuesday, May 8, 2001
Contact:
Naomi Seligman
Violence Policy Center
(202) 822-8200 x105
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