Starting the Conversation on a Voluntary Gun Buyback Program
While much of our recent attention has been on preventing rampage shootings, accidental shootings continue to happen at an alarming rate and demand our attention and action.
Each year in Texas, 609 kids are injured or killed by guns. The most recent shooting in San Antonio occurred just three weeks ago when two teenage boys accidentally discharged a handgun they had been playing with.
Often, these children found the gun—unsecured—in their own home before either shooting themselves or a friend.
It’s a tragic event that happens far too often. That’s why I joined my colleagues Councilman Courage and Councilwoman Andrews-Sullivan earlier this week to introduce their proposal for a voluntary gun buyback program. It’s one possible option in what needs to be a multi-pronged approach to reducing gun violence.
As proposed, the program would use funds from the Asset Forfeiture Fund, so it would not require taxpayer dollars.
You may have read that gun buyback programs don’t reduce criminal shootings or street violence. That’s true. But that’s not our goal. Our goals for the program are simply to reduce the odds that a child stumbles on their parent’s gun and accidentally harms themselves or their friends and family and to offer people who may no longer want their guns a safe way to dispose of them that ensures they do not fall into the wrong hands.
Rest in Peace, Mayor Lila Cockrell
Mayor Cockrell will always hold a larger than life place in San Antonio's history. Not only was she the first woman to serve as San Antonio's Mayor (and the first female mayor of one of the top 10 cities in the U.S.), she was the first woman to chair the board of CPS Energy (then known as City Public Service), the first president of both the Texas Municipal League and the San Antonio Parks Foundation. She even helped to bring the Spurs to San Antonio during her term as mayor.
Perhaps her most important contribution to San Antonio was her commitment to smoothly transitioning our City Council from citywide elections to single-member districts at a time when the idea wasn't as accepted as it is today.
Although she passed today, her legacy lives on in our city.
You're Invited to Learn about National Security and Climate Change
As the climate changes across the world, military officials are asking: what does this mean for national security? With temperatures continuing to rise and both storms and droughts becoming more severe, how will countries maintain stability? Similarly, we at the City have wondered: will San Antonio remain a top place for military training? If not, what would that mean for our economy and the hundreds of thousands of local jobs in the defense sector?
It's an important topic for San Antonio. That’s why I want to make sure you received an invitation to the World Affairs Council's panel on National Security and Climate Change this coming Thursday, September 5, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at Weathered Souls Brewing Co., 606 Embassy Oaks #500. I hope to see you there!
