Tears and Anger
According to the AP, the Georgia school shooting this week was the 30th mass killing this year in the United States. THIRTY. Are you all OK with that? I’m not. Here is a list of killings compiled by the AP: apnews.com/article/us-mass-killings-list-14a356281ba8da1d72931cd6f56c41ba
Four people were killed, two teachers and two children, by a 14-year-old boy at a high school near Atlanta, Georgia, Wednesday morning. He opened fire using an AR-platform-style rifle. The suspected shooter was charged with murder, and his father has been charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of second-degree murder and eight counts of cruelty to children, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI). Maybe when more parents are charged for providing access to guns for their kids, the parents will be more careful.
Nine people were injured. We don’t even know what that means for them, physically, even though reports are that they will make a “full recovery.” But they will never recover from the trauma of being shot. Nor will the parents, family members and friends of those who were killed. The start of the school year is usually a happy, hopeful time. Not for the families of those who were killed. Those families saw their loved ones go to school in the morning and will never see them return. Never. Ever.
This is the 16th mass shooting in Georgia this year. A mass shooting is defined by four or more people injured, not including the shooter.
Last year, 297 children (age 0-11) were killed by guns and 1,835 teenagers (age 12-17) were killed by guns. In Oklahoma there were at least 109 shootings in 2023, 41 people killed and 93 people injured. (gunviolencearchive.org) Since school started, guns were taken away from two students at Tulsa area high schools. One was carrying the gun in a backpack. This could easily be your child’s school next time.
Firearm-related injury is the leading cause of death among children and teens in the United States.
According to the NIH, firearm deaths among children and adolescents jumped nearly 30% between 2019 and 2020. This is a national health crisis, yet nothing is done about it. Freedom to have guns, including those made specifically for killing, is more important than our children’s lives.
Every time a school shooting happens, the facts and stats are pulled out and mulled over. Does knowing that guns are killing our children every single day spur action? No. There is already the usual deflection surrounding the Georgia shooting. It’s mental illness. No, it’s not. Other countries have people with mental illness, and they don’t have children being shot and killed every day. It’s guns. Or maybe we need more secure public buildings. No, that doesn’t make a difference. It’s guns. Guns are killing our children. Apparently, it’s more important to have the freedom of unrestricted ownership of firearms than to keep our children safe.
After a mass killing at a school, those of us who write for parents or talk to parents give tips on how to talk to children when the unspeakable happens. I’m not going to do that this time. These shootings happen so often that it’s easy to find tips on how to talk to children on the internet. I’m tired of talking.
I can’t look a kid in the eye and say that there’s nothing we can do. I can’t say that they will be safe at school. I can’t say they will be safe anywhere. I can say, “Sadly, the adults who are supposed to be protecting you are not doing their job. But I promise I will work harder to make sure that you are safe. I will work harder to encourage legislators to pass gun safety laws. I will work harder to encourage background checks with no loopholes. I will work harder to support red flag laws. I will work harder to make sure that gun owners are licensed adults who secure their guns. I will work harder to rid this country of assault rifles.”
I cannot tell a child in Oklahoma that they will be safe from gun violence. According to everytownresearch.org, “Oklahoma lacks all the foundational gun violence prevention laws and its policies put it squarely in the group of ‘national failures.’ The state has some of the highest gun death rates, gun suicide rates, and household firearm ownership rates in the country…Very few protections remain for Oklahoma residents.”
In contrast, Connecticut took action after the Sandy Hook Elementary School killings and tightened its gun laws. It is now one of the safest states in terms of gun violence. Safety measures, background checks, waiting periods, safe storage – all of these things work. The facts speak for themselves.
Guns are the leading cause of death for children in the United States. That should not be acceptable to any of us.
