[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 68 (Wednesday, May 12, 1999)]
[House]
[Page H3005]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            AMERICAN PEOPLE WANT OPEN DEBATE ON GUN VIOLENCE

  (Mrs. McCARTHY of New York asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute.)
  Mrs. McCARTHY of New York. Mr. Speaker, a number of us here today are 
talking about trying to save our children.
  The tragedy that happened in Littleton, Colorado, last month 
certainly struck this Nation. What a lot of people do not know is that 
we lose 13 children every single day. That is a classroom every 2 days. 
I am hoping that here, in Congress, we will address this in a 
bipartisan way.
  Because the American people want their children to be safe. There are 
solutions that we can come to. There are solutions that we can work 
together on to try to save our children on a daily basis.
  Mr. Speaker, I am asking the people of America to call and e-mail all 
their Congressmen and say, ``We want an open debate.'' Let this not be 
a fight. Let us do the right thing. Let us have the debate. Let us talk 
about all the things that we see going wrong and try to make a 
correction.
  That is why I came to Congress. That is why I am here, to try to 
reduce gun violence in this country.

                          ____________________