Fifty Religious Groups Demand Gun Control in U.S.

Washington, Nov 13 (Prensa Latina) While the debate about gun control is still open in the United States today, local media published a letter in which 50 religious organizations demand that Congress take actions on gun violence.

The groups, which make up the Faiths United to Prevent Gun Violence Coalition, called for Congress to 'take immediate action to curb the onslaught of gun violence plaguing our nation.'

The coalition noted the shootings that have taken place at houses of worship in recent years, including the 2015 church shooting in Charleston, South Carolina, and the shooting at the Sikh Temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, in 2012.

In the letter, addressed to the Republican and Democratic leadership in the House of Representatives and the Senate and published on the website of The Hill, the groups noted, 'It is horrifying that innocents were massacred in a house of worship once again, a terrifying reality for all people of faith in this country who believe that their congregations are sanctuaries of peace, safety, life, and love.'

'We would welcome the opportunity to discuss our coalition's legislative priorities with you. All people in our beloved country deserve to feel safe in their houses of worship and their communities; inaction is immoral and wrong,' says the letter.

In the document, the groups called on Congress to take action to close loopholes that allow domestic violence offenders to own and buy guns, implement a universal background check system and pass an assault weapons ban, among other demands.

The letter on gun control was published when democrats and several social sectors are calling to take actions to prevent gun violence after the shooting in Texas and the worst shooting in U.S. history, as a result of which 58 people were killed in Las Vegas, Nevada, on October 1.