House Judiciary Committee

Madame Chair and members of the committee, good afternoon. I am Paul Stankewitz with the Michigan Catholic Conference, the official public policy voice of the Catholic Church in our state. Thank you for the opportunity to speak with you today about gun reform legislation. The Conference supports expanded background checks, safe storage, and extreme protection orders. I want to spend a few moments discussing the real issue at hand, which is violence in our society. We oppose violence of any kind, and the dignity of all persons must be respected, from conception to natural death. We need to begin taking policy actions, as a society, in a coherent, holistic manner to embrace and foster a culture of life. We need to face facts, that gun violence, be it homicide or suicide, is a burden upon our society, devalues life, and is degrading our culture.

Representatives, you have a balancing act to perform, which is admittedly difficult, but the times call for you to attempt it. A balancing act between arguments that these bills will end violence, and that we simply need to enforce current laws. A balancing act between the Second Amendment, and the common good. A balancing act between rights, and responsibilities.

Will new legislation end all violence? No. Would they have prevented two recent tragedies in Michigan? Perhaps. With these in law, Will people still commit horrible, senseless crimes? Unfortunately, Yes.

To paraphrase the Michigan State University Alma Mater, my alma mater, “twilight silence has fallen” on too many Michiganders. This is not just about what happened to innocent Spartans last month, it’s not just about the taking of innocent lives at Oxford High School in 2021. This is about what happens on our urban streets, in our small towns, and in homes across our state, each and every week. We urge the legislature to have a thorough conversation about violence. We ask you to go beyond these bills. A public information campaign must be added to this effort, to educate the people of this state that they are responsible for the weapons under their care. We call for greater attentiveness to, and awareness of those among us who feel alienated or isolated from society, whether it’s in the classroom, in our neighborhoods, or within our families. Accordingly, we must meet the mental health needs of our residents. To reduce gun violence, we must address the underlying social issues that prompt violence and death in the first place. The Michigan Catholic Conference stands ready to have this discussion with you.

The bills you will be taking up are steps on a journey toward a culture that values life, recognizes and includes the isolated among us, and seeks to bring safety to our communities. We urge you to take these important steps, support the legislation, and continue the conversation.

Thank you.