Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: January 5, 2009
Contact : Sue McKinney
PRESS ADVISORY
STUDENTS TO SIGN GUN PLEDGE
MACON: U.S. Attorney Maxwell Wood announces that over 300 middle school students in the Crawford County school system will be joining over 5 million other students around the nation in signing a pledge against gun and gang violence, on Friday, January 9, 2009. The pledge signing will take place following an assembly held at Crawford County Middle School, 401 Lowe Road, Roberta, at 9:00 AM.
This will be Crawford County’s first observance of the National Day of Concern about Young People and Gun Violence, a nationwide observance which gives our school children the opportunity to sign the Student Pledge Against Gun Violence. The Pledge provides in substance that students will not carry guns to school or use a gun to resolve personal problems or disputes. By giving our students the opportunity to sign a pledge in the company of their peers, knowing that other students across the state and country are doing the same, we can hopefully cause them to think about the toll of gun violence on their generation and encourage them to envision ways to diminish this threat to their health and safety.
The event will be sponsored by the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Project Safe Neighborhoods initiative and Student Crimestoppers. Invited speakers include Resident-Agent-in-Charge Morgan Fisher, ATF; District Attorney Howard Simms, Juvenile Court Judges Quintress Gilbert and Tom Matthews, Crawford County Sheriff Lewis Walker, retired Sheriff Kerry Dunaway, Roberta Police Chief Jackie Cooper, and Crawford County School Superintendent John Douglas. Media is encouraged to attend. If you need additional information about the National Day of Concern, please contact Pamela Lightsey, Community Relations Specialist, at 478-621-2603. Additional information and ideas for activities on the National Day of Concern may also be found at www.pledge.org.
