Empathy is defined as, "the feeling that you understand and share another person's experiences and emotions; the ability to share someone else's feelings." We see this now in the wake of the Orlando tragedy, support coming from around the country for the LGBTQ and Latino communities and all those affected by the senseless tragedy, but what about before?
Did we see empathy from GOP candidate Donald Trump? Who's mantra has been "build a wall," to create a physical barrier between us and them, isolating America even further from its neighbor and making it even harder for people trying to better their lives.
Did we see empathy from those opposed of homosexuality? Because there are still people after this tragedy like Pastor Roger Jimenez from Verity Baptist Church in Sacramento who stated that we “shouldn’t be mourning the death of 50 sodomites.”
And what about the NRA, whose Twitter account has only tweeted defensive statements about why guns are not the problem? No statement mourning the tremendous loss of life by a gun, no empathy for the victims or survivors.
Do I agree that America has a gun problem? Yes. Just look at any statics like this one from The Wall Street Journal listed America as having 133 mass shootings compared to its runner up Germany which had 6:
While I strongly believe that that semi-automatic assault rifles like the AR-15, which has been used in many of the mass shootings such as Newtown and Aurora, should be banned from the public, I do believe that it is a right to bear arms as long as we are not giving out military grade weapons on anyone who wants one.
But we have a bigger problem: a lack of empathy that is shown time and time again connected with gun violence.
Each story of a mass shooting that takes place in this country has its villain. They are normally those who are outcast from society, have some form of a mental health disorder, or show a complete lack of care when it comes to the value of human life.
Are these people born with a lack of empathy, or does it come with how we are raised and treated while growing up? Nature verses nurture?
I believe that it could be both.
Some people are born with disorders such as Autism, which can be linked with difficulties when placed in a social setting. They are ostracized, seen as weird. They are the kids who are made fun of in class because they aren't like everyone else. And sometimes they don't get help.
But what if instead of shutting those who don't fit the mold of society out, we let them in? We sit next to them in class, we show them kindness and befriend them. If they have something going on in their family life, we can be the ears that listen.
How we treat others is important - it's probably one of the most important things that define you as a person.
So instead of playing the blame game like we do every time a mass shooting happens, why don't we use that energy to make the world a kinder place? Why don't we lend an ear to the kids who are having a rough time? Why don't we teach those who care only about themselves the value of each human life?
Because this isn't just a gun problem, mass shootings are not going to go away if we ban assault rifles. Mass shootings will go away when we learn to make America a kinder place.
