Now, the second major characteristic, Mr. Chairman, of these homicides is the availability of a weapon, not just any weapon, but an efficient mechanism which can kill.

A recent national crime commission study showed that assaults with handguns were five times more likely to kill than assaults with any other weapon.

I pause on that statistic because there are those who are known to say that is it not guns that kill; it is people who kill, and therefore don't talk about trying to control the instrumentalities of death and violence, just worry about controlling people. Mr. Chairman, respectfully, that is bull. Guns do kill and the studies now uniformly show that assaults with handguns were five times more likely to kill than assaults with any other weapon. Handguns were responsible for 66 percent of the homicides in Atlanta during the last 3 years.

Now while there is no simple solution for the high emotion factor in homicides; there is a solution, and a simple one, and that is to dramatically reduce homicides across this country, and I believe other crimes as well, and that is the elimination of the other major contributing factor in the majority of our homicides-handguns.

I wholeheartedly support the recommendation of the National Advisory Commission on Criminal Justice Standards and Goals, and of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, whose Committee on Criminal Social Justice I chair, and they are, that the sale of all handguns except to law enforcement agencies or governments be strictly prohibited and that private possession of handguns be prohibited after January 1, 1983.

If I were to differ with any particulate of that position, Mr. Chairman, it would simply be that if we could speed up the effective dates, let's do so. If it can become effective tomorrow, let's do so, but, certainly as quickly as possible.

I would like to propose therefore, for your consideration a fourpoint plan for achieving that goal.

Point No. 1, I propose the immediate establishment in every State of a handgun control project similar to the national project of the U.S. Conference of Mayors. By January 1, 1976, I would like to see each State with an active organization which can provide two major services:

(A) This organization can provide resources to out-lobby the anti-gun-control lobbyists. National samples over the past 10 years, Mr. Chairman, by independent pollsters have shown that a consistent majority of all Americans favor handgun control-I emphasize favor favor handgun control. Yet, this overwhelming majority has been less effective in making its views known to legislators across the country than have the highly effective, well-financed lobbyists for organizations such as the National Rifle Association, and the Georgia Wildlife Federation, among others.

I wish the Georgia Wildlife Federation would be as concerned about human life as about wildlife and take a position in favor of handgun control.

These handgun control projects can and should lobby vigorously for gun control legislation on a local level and I personally will

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pledge my support here today for fundraising efforts to finance this national lobbying campaign.

(B) The State handgun control projects can aid the national projects in providing vital research on a State-by-State basis and in disseminating this research and other information which describes the true facts about handguns.

This research, for example, would address such issues as: How many persons who steal automobiles carry guns when they steal? How many persons engaged in burglary, larceny, and drug traf ficking are armed? Would these persons engage in this activity if they did not have guns? Do handguns really provide personal protection to individuals who carry them?

Some studies, I might add, parenthetically, Mr. Chairman, some studies indicate for example that a gun purchased to protect a family from intruders in one's home is six times more likely to be used to kill a family member or a friend.

The compilation and dissemination of this type of information is vital to the proponents of handgun control. The coordination of statewide projects with the national project will aid in providing basic tools for those of us who will lobby for handgun control legislation.

Point 2, I propose by 1978 to have strong new local handgun control laws on the books in every State.

Point No. 3, I propose the passage of strict Federal legislation effective not later than 1980 to control the vast black market in handguns and to regulate strictly the importation of handguns. It has been estimated there are 2 million illegal handguns in New York City alone at the present time, which means that they are not properly registered and are probably of a substandard variety and arrived in the city in direct violation of existing Federal and local laws.

I might add, however, that New York City compares more favorably on the statistics than does Atlanta. For example, studies have shown that in cities with local restrictions such as Los Angeles and Chicago, handgun homicides were much lower than cities such as Dallas, Phoenix, and Atlanta, which virtually have no restrictions. The number of handgun homicides decreases even more in cities with greater restrictions such as Philadelphia and New York.

You know, we often hear people say, "Well look at the Sullivan law in New York, it's obviously a fairy tale; look how many homicides they have." Mr. Chairman, per capita, Atlanta is in worse shape than New York City. At least New York has some local legislation. My point here is, local legislation is not the most effective kind, but it is better than nothing.

Mr. CONYERS. Would you yield at that point, Mr. Mayor?
Mayor JACKSON. I would.

Mr. CONYERS. Isn't it fair to say that local legislation without supplementary State and Federal legislation is ultimately doomed to fail?

Mayor JACKSON. Mr. Chairman, I don't know that I am able to draw that conclusion entirely. I will tell you, however, which I think is, by and large, an affirmative answer to your question, that clearly

if we are serious about attacking the problem effectively, the most effective way to do it would be to have national handgun control legislation, which brings No. 1, uniformity to the Nation as a whole, and No. 2, another forum, a legal forum, for the enforcement of rights if locality and States fail to enforce these laws. I urge, therefore, vigorously urge, Federal legislation in this area. No matter what the States do, no matter what the cities do, but I also urge meanwhile that States and localities act in this area.

I might add at this point, if I may, and I am going to shorten my testimony with your permission; it is a matter of record now and I will leave it there for you, that I have tried through the Georgia Municipal Association for 2 consecutive years now to get the GMA to take a position on this issue. The GMA has many responsible people, many of them who have taken a chance-as they see it anyhow politically which I don't really see or agree is the case-but have taken a chance in this the southern area of our country, which along with the West is probably the most handgun, prohandgun, area of the country, and last year I took the position of asking GMA to support the position of the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National Advisory Commission on Criminal Justice Standards and Goals, and in the past, the resolutions committee on which I serve, by a vote of 22 to 4, amazingly, and I am convinced there was an emotional reaction, because during that very debate, Mr. Chairman, we received information that a young police officer who had been assigned to my home security detail had left my house, after getting off duty, and stopped on his way home at a quick service foodstore, walked in the foodstore during a robbery in progress-although it was unknown to him-and the robber shot him in the face and killed him. Now this was 1974, GMA, at Jekyll Island. The resolutions committee getting this news reacted I think as any humans would react, and 22 to 4 they favored the resolution; but, the next day, Mr. Chairman, it was a different story. When the resolution hit the floor of the GMA, I understood what Custer felt like at the Little Big Horn. Now this year I was convinced that if we wanted to have anything to pass, I had to modulate my posture. I try to be a realist and while saying publicly that I still clung-and still do, in fact, cling-to my position, as I have outlined it here, I said "OK, let's go for something that might pass" and that would be, just a ban on the Saturday night special, and everybody came to me and said "I'll help you and cosponsor it." So, we put other names on the resolution, and even the mayor of College Park, the mayor presently, and the resolutions committee on which he and I served, said "Look, I want to substitute my bill for yours." I read it; I said "Are you going to back it" and he said "yes." I said, "OK, then I will even accept your version" of coying for the Georgia Municipal Association to act on this matter and to ban the Saturday night special only. The next day even he, the mayor presently, got up on the floor and fought against his own resolution.

Mr. CONYERS. Well, I am sorry to hear that politicians can be just as hypocritical in your area as they can in mine. It is very sad news. Mayor JACKSON. Well, Mr. Chairman, the result of that was that

it didn't pass, obviously, and therefore, I emphasize the critical need for Federal legislation that will control this area that I think is sovital to the American way of life.

Now, my fourth and final point provides for passage, I hope, and for an effective date of the bill not later than-and this represents a change by the way in my written testimony-not later than January of 1980-not later than, but preferably before, of legislation along the lines of the recommendations of the National Advisory Commission.

Appointed by former President Nixon, Mr. Chairman, and I emphasize this point, one cannot claim the National Advisory Commission is a wild-eyed liberal organization; it has even been suggested by a few people I know in Washington that the Nixon administration was very much surprised by how far out on this point his Commission got and delayed the revelation of the results for some period of time, maybe a month or so; but here is a Commission of around 2,000 Americans representing the law enforcement establishment of this country, plus private citizens, appointed by the Nixon administration, Mr. Chairman, known to be, admitted to be, and proud at that time to be a Republican administration if that has any bearing; the Commission appointed by that administration, Mr. Chairman, has recommended: (a) The enactment of State legislation no later than January 1, 1983, prohibiting the private possession of handguns. after that date; (b) the enactment of State legislation prohibiting the manufacture of handguns, handgun parts, and handgun ammunition within the State, except for the sale to law enforcement agencies or for military use; and (c) the enactment of State legislation prohibiting the sale of handguns, their parts and ammunition to other than law enforcement agencies or Federal or State Governments for military purposes; (d) the enactment of State legislation establishing and funding a State agency authorized to purchase all voluntarily surrendered handguns to be retained by private citizens as curios, museum pieces, or collector's items; and (e) the enactment of State legislation or other legislation, Federal preferably, providing for police discretion in stop-and-frisk searches of persons and searches of automobiles for illegal handguns-that was the recommendation of the National Advisory Commission.

On the last point, Mr. Chairman, namely the stop-and-frisk situation, I am not quite sure where I stand. I may have some reservations about that, but that was how far that Commission went-a conservative Republican-appointed commission on the issue of handgun control. America, Mr. Chairman, is ready now for Congress to act. America needs for Congress to act now. America is pleading with Congress to act now. This is Democratic and Republican and this is black and white, and I have even heard some people, by the way, on the question of the black, the black issue, I have heard some people say in the black community-very few luckily-that if you control handguns, this is what they say-then you know what is going to happen, it will mean the whites will still have their handguns and only the blacks will have their handguns controlled. Mr. Chairman, I suggest to you that that is poppycock-and I will spell that for the record if that is not clear.

Mr. Chairman, the fact is the black-on-black homicide rate is one of the worst disgraces we have in the country. I don't have time to go into all the reasons for it but will suffice it to say that this is not a racial thing. This matter affects all people, all Americans of any color, of every economic stratum, to different degrees sometimes, but all people and I, as a black man, and a black American, and as a mayor, of this city, plead with you in behalf of all Atlantans black or white to do something and please do it now. Thank you.

Mr. CONYERS. I am very deeply grateful for your statement and I think you have covered many of the major problems. It is important that we put the racial question in perspective and I commend you for your direct handling of this, Mayor Jackson.

There are those in the black community who feel that they are going to end up with the short end of the stick with the kind of perspective laws that might be being considered. But, I concur with your assessment that whatever amount of racism that exists in the criminal justice system is probably not going to be improved or diminished by the passage of laws relating to gun matters. I think the deeper question of racism in the criminal justice system is one that needs to be addressed

Mayor JACKSON. I agree.

Mr. CONYERS [continuing]. More vigorously without consideration of this particular law and I am glad to gain your concurrence on that.

Mayor JACKSON. I agree fully.

Mr. CONYERS. The other ancillary problem in the black community, as I see it, and I would just like to have your view in this question as well, is that in reality the black community of an urban center is subject, in fact, to more criminal activity. The danger of residents being subject to burglaries, holdups, and other crimes of violence are increased. This, of course, requires all of us who are concerned with firearms regulation to realize that there is a legitimate reason implicit in their opposition to handgun control or firearms regulation. They need more and better police protection. Would that be a fair assessment to draw on this portion of our discussion?

Mayor JACKSON. That is entirely fair, Mr. Chairman, and to emphasize your comments just before that, obviously any law that is passed must be equitably, fairly, impartially, and nonracially enforced, it seems to me, and so we must not disregard the propensity in many sections of our Nation to discriminately and discriminatorily enforce certain laws. We must be, however, vigilant to make sure that doesn't happen in this case; but, that potential to be addressed as a separate problem does not mean that we should not pass this law. If that argument were carried to a logical conclusion, we shouldn't pass any law.

Now, Mr. Chairman, the most criminally victimized community in America is the black community. The chances of a black woman being raped if her income especially is under $10,000 per year are four times greater than if she were white. The chances that a black person will be robbed are five times greater than if he or she were white and it goes on and goes on and goes on.