Friend, As the Friday night lights begin to illuminate high school football fields across Pennsylvania, we’re faced with a devastating reality: Shootings at K-12 school sports events are happening with increased regularity. In 2024, there were at least 49 school shootings during sports events. In most cases, these shootings happened off the field in the stadium parking lot. In almost every instance, they were disputes that escalated into deadly violence because someone in the crowd was carrying a gun.1
With the Pennsylvania state budget still stalled in the Senate and schools and community violence intervention groups missing payments from the state, our communities are at heightened risk as we enter this football season. Even if you've sent a message in the last few months, I need your voice again.
Use our tool to tell Senator Nikil Saval to do what they can to pass the budget and get lifesaving community violence intervention funding into our neighborhoods. |
The PA House has already passed — with bipartisan support — a state budget that includes $76.5 million in violence prevention funding. This money could save thousands of lives by funding local groups that address the root causes of violence and prevent shootings before they happen.
But with the budget stuck in the Senate, organizations that proactively prevent gun violence are unable to hire staff or plan programs. They might even have to make cuts. That puts more of us in danger.
High school football games should be safe places where students, families, alumni, and neighbors can gather. Our kids should be worried about studying for their next math test, not whether they'll be safe at their homecoming game.
Please take action today. In community, Adam Garber Executive Director CeaseFirePA |
