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6D Memo on BOH Mayors Against Illegal Gun Initiative

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6D Memo on BOH Mayors Against Illegal Gun Initiative OFFICE OF THE SELECT BOARD \ Select Board Phone: (413) 259-3001 Town Hall Fax: (413) 259-2405 4 Boltwood Avenue [email protected] Amherst, MA 01002-2351 www.amherstma.gov TO: AMHERST SELECT BOARD FROM: DOUG SLAUGHTER SUBJECT: MAYORS AGAINST ILLEGAL GUNS STATEMENT OF PRINCIPLES DATE: AUGUST 24, 2016 After our discussion on June 20, 2016 of the Board of Health recommendation that the Select Board sign the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Statement of Principles and to enroll with the Everytown for Gun Safety organization in order to access information and resources that may aid the Board of Health in its goals to prevent gun related injuries, I volunteered to do some background research on the organization. The following represents my findings. Background: Mayors Against Illegal Guns (MAIG) was formed in April 2006 by a coalition of 15 mayors at a summit co-hosted by Michael Bloomberg (then mayor of New York City) and Thomas Menino (then mayor of Boston). In April of 2014 Mayors Against Illegal Guns merged with Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America (an organization formed after the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown Connecticut) to form Everytown for Gun Safety. At the formation of this combined organization Mayor Bloomberg indicated that he sought to create an organization that would work toward having similar political influence as the National Rifle Association. Everytown for Gun Safety states that they have 4 primary gun related issues that they work toward change on: • Background • Domestic violence • Preventable • Gun trafficking As the original MAIG and now Everytown have evolved there has been both growth and attrition of the mayoral membership. Everytown indicates that most of the attrition is due to the natural cycle of political turnover in elected officials; however, there have been mayors who have formally resigned from the organization. Often those who have resigned from the organization felt that the mission and purpose had changed from one related to illegal guns to one that was seeking to reduce all gun ownership and not just eliminate illegal gun activities. Points for Consideration: As we return to the issue of whether to ask the Chair to sign the statement of principles and have the Town join the Everytown for Gun Safety organization I think there are a few questions for us to consider. 1. Everytown is primarily an organization working to exert political influence. As such they are actively involved in supporting and opposing political candidates in elections at all levels of government in all areas of the country. Do we think that this reflects how the Town would like to exert political influence? 2. Would adding our town to the organization have consequential negative or positive political impacts to the Town? 3. Would adding our town to the organization have consequential negative or positive financial impacts to the Town? 4. Given the political activity of the organization, do we feel that the research materials, statistical analysis, etc. will be sufficiently vetted to prevent an erosion of confidence in their validity? 5. Will the political activity of the organization prevent or enhance the efficacy of the programming we use for education and outreach about gun safety and gun-related issues? Page | 2 .
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