Remembering Anastasia De Sousa (1988-2006)

Dear Coalition for Gun Control Supporter,

This September 13th will mark the fifth anniversary of Anastasia De Sousa's tragic death at Montreal's Dawson College. That day, a man with a history of mental illness shot 20 students with a legal Beretta CX-4 Storm, a semi-automatic tactical weapon with characteristics of military assault weapon.

Since then, Anastasia's parents, alongside victims, students, teachers and staff at Dawson College have joined our struggle to fight for stronger gun control. Their help was critical in stopping efforts to dismantle the long-gun registry last year.

The Dawson College shooting was a grim reminder of the importance of keeping guns away from unbalanced and dangerous individuals. While no law can prevent all tragedies, we know that Canada's gun control law makes these kinds of occurrences less likely to happen, making it harder -not easier- for dangerous individuals to gain access to guns. Days after the tragedy, the long-gun registry was instrumental in disarming a potential copycat in a small Quebec town. We'll never know for sure how many other tragedies our gun control law has helped to prevent.

The list of prohibited weapons has not been updated since 1995 and many new firearms not suited for hunting and target shooting and banned in other countries are being sold to civilians. The Coroner's report into the Dawson College shooting recommended that guns such as the Beretta CX4 Storm be banned.

In September 2008, the Quebec government's "Anastasia Law" came into effect, strengthening gun safety in the province through enhancing the reporting of high-risk behaviours in connection with firearms. The law further banned the presence of firearms in schools and daycare centres, and on public and school transportation.

With the recent death of Jack Layton, we have lost one of our strongest allies in the House of Commons. Jack worked tirelessly to ensure that his caucus did not vote with the Conservatives to dismantle the legislation. Last year, as a result of his efforts, six NDP MPs who had voted with the Conservatives, switched their votes and saved the gun registry in spite of terrible, personal attacks and expensive targeted campaigns in their ridings.

Jack was one of the first politicians to meet with the Dawson College Gun Control Committee and told the group "When a shooting takes place in a school, it shakes all of us to the core. We think of a school as a safe place, where you go to learn. So it seems like a violation of everything we believe in when something like that happens." ... "The answer to gun violence is not to end the gun registry - it's to ensure that assault weapons do not end up on city streets. I'm here to urge [the government] to keep up the pressure for the reform of gun laws so that the kinds of guns that were used here would no longer be permitted. "

What you can do to protect our gun law so that tragedies like the Dawson College shooting never happen again:       

We are just one week away from the House of Commons returning and we know the government plans to quickly introduce a Bill to scrap the long-gun registry. The NDP has yet to take an official party position. Help us make sure that we keep Jack Layton's vision alive. 

Please call or e-mail Nycole Turmel (613-992-7550; Nycole.Turmel@parl.gc.ca) and NDP MPs this week to share your desire to continue Jack's legacy and work together to end gun violence. Ask that the party oppose the Harper government's plans to weaken Canada's gun control.

Mention these key facts:

Rifles and shotguns in the wrong hands are as deadly as handguns, we need controls on all guns.

Registering all firearms holds gun owners accountable for their firearms and reduces the chances that their guns will be diverted to unlicensed owners, helping to choke off the illegal supply.

Registration is a one-time procedure, and it's free. The system is in place, and 6.9 million rifles and shotguns are already registered. Eliminating the long-gun registry will not refund the financial investment to set it up, nor will it save billions of dollars in the future.

The gun registry is an essential tool used 16,000 times a day by police, including when intervening in domestic disputes. It assists police investigations and in removing ALL guns from dangerous people, enforcing prohibition orders, and taking preventative action.

Gun control works. Health and safety experts have shown that stronger gun laws have reduced gun-related death rates.

Licensing gun owners and registering firearms is the norm internationally. Scrapping the long-gun registry will undermine our ability to meet our international commitments to combat gun trafficking.

Call 1-800-O-Canada or go to www.parl.gc.ca to find Members of Parliament's contact information.

Thank you so much for your commitment!

The Coalition for Gun Control