Mr. President, on New Year's Day, the Governor of Michigan signed into law a bill to take discretion away from local gun boards in issuing concealed gun licenses. The new law, scheduled to take effect on July 1st of this year, would increase the number of concealed handgun licenses in our state by 200,000 to 300,000 – a ten-fold increase.

The concealed weapons law is being challenged by a coalition of law enforcement and community groups across our state called the People Who Care About Kids. This coalition is working to obtain 151,000 signatures needed to suspend the implementation of the law and put the issue before voters in 2002.

Other groups in our state are also working along side the coalition to keep our streets and our communities safe. One such group is the Detroit-based Save Our Sons And Daughters (SOSAD). I would like to insert an article in the Record from the Detroit News about SOSAD to show what they are doing to fight the concealed weapons bill and to keep our children safe from gun violence.

DETROIT -- After 14 years of helping hundreds of grieving families, who've lost a loved one as a result of homicide, suicide, disease and natural death, Clementine Barfield, founder and president of the nonprofit, Detroit-based Save Our Sons and Daughters, says the organization is facing a new challenge.

Michigan's latest concealed gun legislation, which limits the power of county gun boards to deny gun permits, has moved the group to turn up the heat in their efforts to promote peace.

Homicide is among the leading causes of death for African-American youths, recent data compiled by the Michigan Department of Community Health said.

"Homicide is real and the effects on children in our community is immeasurable," Barfield said. "People should not believe that they are immune to this type of tragedy. Many children already have a false confidence in weapons, as evidenced by reports of their use of guns and violence in the news. If ever there was a right time to promote peace in our community, the time is now."

In March, the group's mothers will reveal their new image, a white kerchief and arm band, which is both a symbol of their grief and desire for peace.

The nonprofit group, which also honors other groups that help the grieving after deadly tragedies, is seeking corporate and community sponsorship to develop programs and activities for youth that will promote nonviolence. The organization also is in need of volunteers willing to make a long-term service commitment to perform an array of administrative tasks, as well as spread the message of peace to youth who, often, enlist the use of violence and handguns to settle disputes.

'Usher in more death'

Save Our Sons and Daughters member Cheryl Ross, her husband and their four children moved to the suburbs after her son, DeWunn Carter, 23, was shot to death in 1977 at a Coney Island Restaurant on Chicago near Evergreen, just a few steps from the front door of their former home.

"I believe this new law will make it easier for more people to get their hands on guns and keep them concealed, which will make it easier for more youth to get their hands on weapons," Ross said. "I think this new law is just a platform to usher in more death."

Ross, who lives in Redford Township, has a better look than most at the toll homicide takes. She is a SOSAD liaison assigned to the Detroit Police Department Homicide Unit, along with Linda Barfield and Vera Rucker.

Working in the homicide division, contacting victim's families and helping them has been therapeutic, Ross said.

Liaisons almost daily receive a list of homicides they use to create a file that includes basic information about the family, such as phone number, address and the number of family members. Serving as go-betweens, they contact the families and offer the group's counseling and support group services. They also provide families with information about the case and how the process works.

"If they are grieving and just need someone to talk to, we are here for that, too, because as many of the SOSAD staffers are mothers who've lost children, we understand what they are going through," Ross said.

Victim liaison Rucker, who has been with SOSAD since its inception, said, "No one can understand what you're going through -- the grief, anger, anguish and frustration -- unless they've lost a child to homicide."

Her daughter, Melody "Poochie" Rucker, 14, was shot and killed on Detroit's west side by random gunfire at a back-to-school party for Benedictine High School students in 1986.

Police Inspector William Rice, commanding officer for the Detroit police homicide unit, has been a law enforcer for 31 years. He said, without a doubt, the group's 3-year-old victim liaison office at the First precinct has been a new tool to help in the aftermath of homicide.

"After a homicide, the family is usually confronted by a lot of social and economic issues, such as how and why the crime was committed, and then they almost immediately have to deal with funeral planning and burial expenses," Rice said. "SOSAD members avail themselves to assist families with whatever it is they need."

"The volunteers can bring the compassion element that police officers cannot offer because their (the police) job is to solve the crime by asking a lot of questions that may make family members uncomfortable and, many times, the clues to solving a crime may lead us back to the family," Rice said.

Barfield, a former City of Detroit accounting department employee, said she was always troubled by reports of the growing number of Detroit youth who were shot and, often, fatally wounded by handguns.

The 1986 death of her son, Derick, 16, and that of many other Detroit youth moved Barfield to create the organization which has been featured in newspapers and magazines across the country, including Essence, Ebony and People magazines.

Hundreds helped

In the last 14 years, the group has helped hundreds of families through the grieving process with counseling and support groups that meet weekly.

There also is a 24-hour crisis hotline in which volunteers provide immediate response to families in need.

Since 1988, the group has held an annual public memorial service that is open to anyone wanting to light a candle in memory of someone killed. This year's service will be held from 4-6 p.m. March 17 at the Cobo Center.

The group also hosts an annual appreciation breakfast, usually during National Crime Victim Rights week, the last week in April, to give accolades and the Angel of Mercy Award to emergency room medical staff, homicide investigators, funeral directors and morgue personnel.

Save Our Sons and Daughters

What: A nonprofit group whose aim is to raise community awareness to improve the mortality rate of Detroit youth and young adults.

Founder, president: Clementine Barfield

Founded: 1987

Staff: 12, including counselors, victim advocates, a crisis response coordinator and volunteers.

Address: 2441 W. Grand Blvd.

Phone: (313) 361-5200; hotline (877) 361-5282

Fax: (313) 361-0055