Thomas Gabor in person at Politics and Prose

Fred Guttenberg, who lost his beloved daughter Jaime in the 2018 Parkland school shooting, and International gun policy consultant Thomas Gabor team up in American Carnage to dismantle some of the most common myths about guns and gun violence.

A national disgrace. Over 40,000 die each year as a result of gun violence in America. Relative to other advanced countries, the U.S. has a dismal gun violence record. Gun law reforms could reduce the number of gun deaths per year, but many political challenges stand in the way. A widespread multi-year misinformation campaign and assault on truth by the gun lobby and gun-extremists sows doubt about the dangers posed by pervasive gun ownership and gun carrying, as well as the potential effectiveness of gun laws.

Debunking popular gun myths. Countering with strong evidence-based research the many slogans and myths repeated incessantly by spokespersons for the gun lobby and its surrogates is essential if we are to have a society in which kids can attend school safely and people can work and enjoy life without fear of being shot. Over the last 30 years, the NRA's campaign to achieve an armed society has succeeded in persuading many Americans that having a gun in the home or carrying a gun makes them safer. The evidence is overwhelming this is not the case. Guns in the home are far more likely to be used against a family member or in a suicide attempt than against an intruder. Tackling this and other myths is critical.

Myths and slogans exposed as false in American Carnage include:

• Gun owners frequently use firearms to fend off attackers
• An armed society is a safer society
• Guns don't kill people, people kill people

If you have read Trigger Points, The Violence Project, Warning Signs, or Fred Guttenberg's Find the Helpers, American Carnage is a must read.

Dr. Thomas Gabor is President of Thomas Gabor, LLC, a criminal justice consulting firm based in Florida.  Dr. Gabor served as a Professor of Criminology at the University of Ottawa from 1981-2011.In 1974, he completed his undergraduate degree in sociology with high honors (magna cum laude) from the University of Montreal (Loyola College Campus). He holds a Master of Arts degree in Criminology from the University of Ottawa (Canada) and a doctorate in Sociology from Ohio State University (1983). He has received the American Society of Criminology’s prestigious Gene Carte Prize for his research on Crime Displacement.  The Department of Homeland Security has designated him as an individual of “Extraordinary Ability.” He has also been inducted into the Canadian and Criminology’s Who’s Who and has been nominated for several teaching awards.

Dr. Gabor is a frequent speaker on gun violence and has spoken to groups such as:  multiple chapters of the League of Women Voters, Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, and the National Council for Jewish Women, as well as religious and interfaith groups, Democratic Party clubs, progressive organizations, and numerous community groups.  For more information on Dr. Gabor’s professional activities, please visit: thomasgaborbooks.com

Garbor will be in conversation with Kris Brown. As President of Brady, one of America’s oldest and boldest gun violence prevention groups, Brown combines a lifelong background in policy, law, and grassroots activism with considerable strategic management expertise to help forge the direction of the organization’s programs and ensure the successful impact of its national and field assets. A veteran of gun violence prevention work, Ms. Brown started her career on Capitol Hill working for Rep. Jim Moran, advocating for the bill that would eventually become the groundbreaking Brady Bill requiring background checks on federally licensed gun sales. Ms. Brown has also served as the Chief Legal Officer of a publicly traded company based in Switzerland and as a lawyer practicing at the law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges. She lives in Arlington, VA, with her two teenage daughters