[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 121 (Thursday, September 16, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Page S11049]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      DAY OF NATIONAL CONCERN ABOUT YOUNG PEOPLE AND GUN VIOLENCE

  Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Judiciary 
Committee be discharged from further consideration of S. Res 158, and 
that the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The clerk will report the resolution by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 158) designating October 21, 1999, as 
     a ``Day of National Concern About Young People and Gun 
     Violence.''

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution 
and the preamble be agreed to en bloc, the motion to reconsider be laid 
upon the table, and that any statements relating thereto be placed in 
the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolution (S. Res. 158) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                              S. Res. 158

       Whereas every day in the United States, 14 children under 
     the age of 19 are killed with guns;
       Whereas in 1994, approximately 70 percent of murder victims 
     aged 15 to 17 were killed with a handgun;
       Whereas in 1995, nearly 8 percent of high school students 
     reported having carried a gun in the past 30 days;
       Whereas young people are our Nation's most important 
     resource, and we, as a society, have a vested interest in 
     enabling children to grow in an environment free from fear 
     and violence;
       Whereas young people can, by taking responsibility for 
     their own decisions and actions, and by positively 
     influencing the decisions and actions of others, help chart a 
     new and less violent direction for the entire Nation;
       Whereas students in every school district in the Nation 
     will be invited to take part in a day of nationwide 
     observance involving millions of their fellow students, and 
     will thereby be empowered to see themselves as significant 
     agents in a wave of positive social change; and
       Whereas the observance of October 21, 1999, as a ``Day of 
     National Concern about Young People and Gun Violence'' will 
     allow students to make a positive and earnest decision about 
     their future in that such students will have the opportunity 
     to voluntarily sign the ``Student Pledge Against Gun 
     Violence'', and promise that they will never take a gun to 
     school, will never use a gun to settle a dispute, and will 
     actively use their influence in a positive manner to prevent 
     friends from using guns to settle disputes: Now, therefore, 
     be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) designates October 21, 1999, as a ``Day of National 
     Concern about Young People and Gun Violence''; and
       (2) requests that the President issue a proclamation 
     calling on the school children of the United States to 
     observe the day with appropriate ceremonies and activities.

                          ____________________