In the first week following the mass shooting in Orlando at the Pulse Nightclub, people all over the US have been praying and watching the news for updates on why and how someone could commit such an evil act. There will be plenty of debates to follow on gun regulation and terrorism, but, as this is unfortunately nothing new, my mind is focused on something else. As much as we might be able to control gun use, we cannot outlaw guns and so gun violence, I'm sure, will never just go away entirely. Terrorism is also a huge problem that we will have to constantly be addressing. These problems will still be around years and years from now, and we hear news about both every single day. These horrifying events take place in all different kinds of places, most recently a dance club. I can't go to the airport, school, movie theater, concert venue, nightclub or even a church without being fearful of an attack, but if I constantly live in fear, I feel as though I'm letting evil win.
I remember the first time I really thought about gun violence and the possibility that it could affect me directly. I wasn't old enough to know what was going on when the Columbine High School massacre took place in 1999, but I can't hear the word Columbine without thinking about all the horror that took place on that day in an ordinary high school not too different from the one I attended. The young people who lost their lives that day were younger than I am now. The parents who sent their young children to school on that horrible day in Sandy Hook never imagined how much danger such innocent children could be in at school. There is no doubt this violence is getting out of hand, and I don't want to think about what it will be like when I might have children some day.
One of the viral videos circulating since the Orlando mass shooting is a speech by Jimmy Fallon at the beginning of his Late Night Show. In the video he is reasonably choked up and distressed over the news of the nightclub shooting and he says at one point, "What do I tell my kids?" Yes, the question is unfortunately "what do we tell our kids?" because it doesn't matter if you're eighteen like Akyra Murray, who died at the Orlando nightclub, or if you're just six years old, like some of the children killed in Sandy Hook. Gun violence affects everyone, whether you believe in God or you don't, and whether you're black or white or whether you're gay or straight doesn't matter, and now not even children are safe. Children use guns as playthings, they see guns in their video games and on their TV shows, or they learn about them from their friends. Kids are being raised in a world in which a week doesn't go by without a school shooting occurring. The place where they spend almost all of their time is a place that killers have penetrated, stealing innocence with the force of a finger.
If I had kids today, I would try my best to inform them of whats going on, not so that they're afraid, but so they know what they're up against when they walk out the door every day. I would tell them how dangerous guns are, and how they ruin people's lives faster than you can even fully grasp how many family and friends would be affected by the loss of one persno. I would tell them to be themselves, to be kind, and to see God in other people. I would tell them that just because the world can be so very violent doesn't mean they have to match that violence to fight against it.
Gun violence won't be the only thing that grows over time. We live in a high-tech society with the media playing a part in every aspect of our lives. Who knows how the media will evolve by the time our generation has children, but when that time comes, we need to make sure our children know of the struggles we went through and we need to teach them Internet safety. Then, when they can use Internet in a safe and respectful manner, we teach them how to use their access to media to combat things like gun violence. So many people were injured and killed in Orlando, but because of media, millions of people are thinking of those people and their families and uniting to show love, respect, and care, three things that can change a person. If only we united before these tragedies happened, and we showed more love, care, and respect to everyone we came across, maybe less people would find it necessary to buy a weapon and unleash their rage upon others.
Its standard to be fascinated by the shooter after a tragedy occurs, and it's because deep down we can't imagine how a person can get to such a dark and horrible place of evil. That dark and horrible place is truly the thing to be feared, because peace begins internally, and someone at war with himself will be at war with everyone around him. So above all, if I ever bring children into this world, I will try my best to teach them to be at peace within their souls, so that peace can be reflected out.
