Editor,

I attended this past Monday’s Langley City Council meeting where I-594 was on the agenda for endorsement. I support this common-sense background check initiative that will close the loophole that allows dangerous people to buy a gun without a background check, and I hope the council will decide to endorse it.

I have spent my entire career as a public health professional committed to improving the health status of our most vulnerable citizens. Let me be clear: gun violence is as much a public health issue as disease outbreaks or safe water. Background checks have been proven to reduce crime and save lives. In the 16 states with background checks on all handgun sales, 38 percent fewer women are shot to death by their intimate partners.

That’s what I-594 will do. What it won’t do is create a gun registry, change any Washington hunting laws, change any laws or requirements regarding gun and safety training, or require a background check when you simply hand someone else a gun.

It simply applies the same background checks to private and online sales that federally licensed dealers (like Cabela’s and Walmart) have used for decades, making it more difficult for felons and domestic abusers to secretly buy guns.

As a mother and a grandmother who wants safety for her children and children’s children, as a nurse and health professional, as a citizen who believes rights come with responsibilities, I urge both the Langley City Council and my Whidbey neighbors to support this initiative.

KATE BRACY

Clinton