The Dominican Sisters of Peace and their associate members, Associates of Peace, announced March 10 that they have adopted a “corporate stance” related to gun control and mental health care.
“In the United States, we will advocate for common-sense gun control laws,” the stance says, “such as requiring universal background checks before purchasing guns; banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines; promoting strategies to prevent gun violence; and providing adequate financial resources to establish mental health programs for victims and perpetrators, and prevention programs for at-risk people.”
The press release noted that the “stance does not advocate taking away the second amendment right to bear arms.”
Dominican Sister Judy Morris said in a press release, “Gun violence in the United States claims more than 31,000 lives every year, with more than a half million injured.
“With responsible, common-sense legislation, thousands of lives can be saved,” said Sister Morris, who coordinates the social justice efforts of the Dominican Sisters of Peace.
The news release said that the U.S. Center for Disease Control has said that “gun violence acts very much like a social contagion. It spreads like a virus. The homicide rate in the U.S. is seven times higher than the combined homicide rates of 22 other developed countries.”
The release also noted that the Dominican Sisters of Peace “are joined by many religious and justice groups around the United States in calling for reasonable gun control laws, including the National Council of Churches, the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops,” and others.
