FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 20, 2014

(Croton Falls, NY) Early this morning, three students were injured during a shooting in the Strozier Library on the campus Florida State University in Tallahassee.

The Campaign to Keep Guns Off Campus issued the following statement in connection with this morning’s shooting.

“We first offer our thoughts to the families of the victims and to the entire Florida State University (FSU) community during this most difficult time.   Various news accounts report that law enforcement personnel should be commended for their swift and professional actions in responding to the active shooter situation which helped to secure the campus and prevent further tragedy.  In addition, it appears that FSU’s emergency notification system operated in a manner to quickly notify students.  Our colleges and universities should be havens for learning, where students, faculty, staff and visitors should not need to worry about the threat of gun violence on their campuses.

Unfortunately, in the last few years, we are seeing an uptick in the number of on campus shootings.   Rather than asking what we need to do in an unfortunate active shooting situation, we need to preemptively ask how these individuals are accessing guns.  Were they stolen? Bought illegally? Bought in a state that does not require background checks? The gun lobby immediately focuses on how to react to a school shooting after it has already occurred, but as evidenced early this morning at FSU, the active shooter training of the Florida State University Police Department and Tallahassee Police Department proved invaluable at saving lives. Rather than arming students, faculty, and staff with guns, we need to focus our energy on preventing these situations from happening. With better access to mental health care, less access to guns, and greater communication, our campuses can continue to be the safe learning spaces they are intended to be.

ABOUT THE CAMPAIGN TO KEEP GUNS OFF CAMPUS

The Campaign to Keep Guns off Campus was founded in 2008 to urge colleges and universities to band together to oppose the gun lobby’s agenda to push guns onto college campuses. To date, the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU) and more than 365 colleges and universities in 41 states have joined the Campaign.  Follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/KeepGunsoffCampus or on Twitter at @KeepGunsoffCamp

Contact: [email protected]

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