As the gun control debate wages on in Colorado and the country, an upcoming Conference on World Affairs panel will stress the importance of addressing issues besides the gun itself that have fallen away from public attention.
Panelists of “Preventing violence: It’s not just the gun” include Andrew Goddard, Arthur Grim and Elaine Miller-Karas.
Andrew Goddard’s career includes 20 years of humanitarian relief in developing countries such as Kenya, Somalia, Bangladesh, Indonesia and Egypt before moving to Virginia in 2007. A strong interest in mental health issues, violence and gun control arose after his son, Colin, was injured in the Virginia Tech shooting in 2007. Colin Goddard, who has bullets under his skin to this day, is no longer on the conference schedule for the Friday panel.
Andrew Goddard is now the president of the Richmond Chapter of the Million Mom March against gun violence and president of the Virginia Center for Public Safety. He also served on the board of the Virginia Behavioral Health and Developmental Services and is currently board chair of the National Gun Victims Action Council.
Grim is the chairman of Pennsylvania’s Juvenile Court Judges’ Commission and a member of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Committee to the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency. During the Jerry Sandusky controversy at Penn State, Grim was appointed to be a judicial representative to the statewide Task Force on Child Protection.
Miller-Karas is the executive director and co-founder of the non-profit corporation Trauma Resource Institute. Her work has taken her to Haiti, Kenya, Thailand, China and many places within the United States in the aftermath of both natural and man-made disasters.
“This [panel] is important, especially in light of recent events, because people need to understand it’s not just the tools being used that are the problem, but the people themselves,” senior physics major Michael Klear, 21, said.
“Preventing violence: It’s not just the Gun” takes place from 1-2:20 p.m. Friday in the UMC Center Ballroom. Cathy Comstock will moderate the panel.
For more information on the conference, check CU Independent previews and the can’t-miss schedule.
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Nick Stollings at Nicholas.stollings@colorado.edu.
