FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media contact: Cynthia Medina, [email protected], 848-445-1940
Rutgers Freshman Fights Gun Violence, Urges Students to Take Action
“It’s your constitutional right to bear arms, but it shouldn’t infringe on my right to live,” said Jai Patel
Newswise — New Brunswick, N.J. (May 2, 2019) – Since the moment Jai Patel and his friends sought cover in a clothing store bathroom when gunfire erupted in a Jersey City Mall, all he has wanted to talk about is how to prevent something like that from ever happening again.
Advocating to stop gun violence wasn’t new for Patel. In the wake of the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., that killed 17 students and staff members, he helped organize a local March for our Lives in Jersey City. The event in his hometown was one of hundreds that took place around the country in tandem with a march in Florida organized by the survivors of the Parkland shooting.
Since coming to Rutgers – and after the terrifying experience of being in the middle of shooting at the Newport Centre Mall – Patel is taking his activism one step further. He is launching a local chapter of Students Demand Action at Rutgers in fall of 2019 in time for his sophomore year. The group is affiliated with Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, a grassroots movement of volunteers fighting lax gun laws and loopholes.
“I want students to get involved before another mass shooting happens,” said Patel, a criminal justice major at Rutgers University-New Brunswick. “I want them to talk to their local legislature, call in to fight for bill packages, contact their city officials if they don't see something they agree with, but I want them to get involved now.”
Patel decided to launch the group after the university was selected by Gov. Murphy this fall to house the New Jersey Center on Gun Violence Research, only the second of its kind in the nation. He said he wants the Rutgers chapter of Students to Demand Action to work with the center to boost its mission to advance data driven policies to address gun violence.
“Our group will sponsor local New Brunswick events and work in close conjunction with New Jersey’s Center on Gun Violence Research at Rutgers to educate students on the epidemic of gun violence. Knowledge is the best weapon to fight the NRA,” Patel said.
The group is an outgrowth of Patel’s activism that started after the Parkland shooting when he and his sister helped organize the local March for Our Lives.
“My sister, who was only 12 years old at the time, wrote a letter to the mayor and he responded within 20 minutes,” Patel said. “I have never heard of any official responding that fast, so I knew we could actually pull this off.”
That was his first time working with the Moms Demand Action, which eventually persuaded him to get more involved.
Then this fall, after the shooting at the Jersey City Mall, he wrote an op-ed in the Star-Ledger which helped establish him as an outspoken advocate.
After learning the shooting was fueled by gang violence, he became interested in learning why people his age turned to gun violence and soon learned the complexity and deep roots of the issue. He’s explored different angles of the issue from why young people get involved in gangs, to domestic violence and NRA funding of politicians and question of access to firearms.
“Everyone is facing something different, but in the end we all want the same thing -- for people to stop dying from gun violence.”
Patel wants to be clear that he is not advocating for banning guns, but wants to keep guns away from the wrong people. He is even applying for a gun license himself.
As part of the group at Rutgers, he will be advocating for a ban on bump stocks, which make semi-automatic weapons fire like they are fully automatic. He wants to limit large capacity firearms and make the process of purchasing a firearm lengthier and more difficult.
“It’s your constitutional right to bear arms, but it shouldn’t infringe on my right to live,” he said.
Patel said he comes from a privileged background, which is why he wants to step up.
“I’ve met moms who lost their kids to drive-by shootings while they simply played in their front porch,” he said. “My sister and I got a chance to play without fear and that shouldn't be exclusive to children from privileged backgrounds.’’
He believes everyone should have that experience.
“Every child should be able to live without fear, and if my privilege gives me the resources to fight on their behalf, then that’s what I’m willing to do.”
To schedule an interview or for more information, contact Cynthia Medina.
Photos of Jai Patel are available for download at this link: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ijts4ag1eeajhbw/AADQOVdjP84Rlkg3hVxoQJAwa?dl=0
###
Broadcast interviews: Rutgers University–New Brunswick has broadcast-quality TV and radio studios available for remote live or taped interviews with Rutgers experts. For more information, contact Cynthia Medina [email protected]
ABOUT RUTGERS—NEW BRUNSWICK
Rutgers University–New Brunswick is where Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, began more than 250 years ago. Ranked among the world’s top 60 universities, Rutgers’s flagship university is a leading public research institution and a member of the prestigious Association of American Universities. It is home to internationally acclaimed faculty and has 12 degree-granting schools and a Division I Athletics program. It is the Big Ten Conference’s most diverse university. Through its community of teachers, scholars, artists, scientists, and healers, Rutgers is equipped as never before to transform lives.
RSS