While scrolling through Twitter early yesterday I saw a video that caught my interest. The video opens on students in a school walking in the hallways and focuses on a young teenage boy in the school’s library as he scribbles on a desk the phrase “I AM BORED”. In the next scene the viewer sees him walking through the halls and returning to the library the next day. Someone responded to his message. He is overjoyed and starts to search for the person who keeps responding to his messages on his desk. At the end of the video he ends up finding out that it was this girl he thought was cute; as he is signing her yearbook and talking to her and her friend, in the background you see a blurry figure open the gym doors with an assault rifle in hand. The viewer sees the gun cock. The viewer watches on as the fear registers in the students faces as they scream and run. The video then states, “While you were watching Evan, another student was showing signs of planning a shooting. But no one noticed.” The viewer realizes that while they were busy watching a love story unfold they missed obvious warning signs. In the first library scene, the shooter is reading a magazine about guns, in another a student is seen reaching out to him and he flips her off and puts his headphones back on. The next scene you see him in he is getting picked on by other students in the hallway. As the video continues you see the shooter watching videos on shooting and while Evan (the main boy in the PSA) is scrolling through his Instagram the viewer manages to get a glimpse of a picture of the shooter posted where he is pointing a gun at the mirror with the caption, “see you at school.” The video proceeds to say, “Gun violence is preventable when you know the signs.”

https://youtu.be/A8syQeFtBKc

This sent shivers down my spine. According to Gabriella Muñoz from Townhall “This past Friday, December 2nd, just over two weeks before the fourth anniversary of the shooting, the Sandy Hook victims’ parents released a PSA on the topic of ‘at-risk behavior’. The video is a part of the Know the Signs campaign from a group called Sandy Hook Promise, which aims to, “honor all victims of gun violence by turning our tragedy into a moment of transformation by providing programs and practices that protect children and prevent the senseless, tragic loss of life.” http://townhall.com/tipsheet/gabriellamu%C3%B1oz/2016/12/05/powerful-psa-from-the-parents-of-sandy-hook-victims-n2255201

I remember where I was the day of Sandy Hook; I was in my fifth period theatre class and had just read a news alert about a shooting happening at an elementary school. My heart was shattered thinking about the scared children whose lives were cut short. I know that gun control is a controversial issue but you know what shouldn’t be? Questioning the safety of my loved ones and my own safety because little progress has been made in regards to gun control.

There was a situation a few weeks ago here at New Mexico State University in my apartment block. A student had managed to hide a gun in his room despite the fact that this campus does not tolerate guns; luckily he was stopped before he could hurt anyone and I am forever grateful that Campus PD, the shooter’s roommate, and a fast acting Resident Assistant were able to stop the situation before real damage was done. I wish I could explain what it feels like not knowing what is happening and how scary a situation like that can be. So before you say that, “guns don’t kill people, people kill people” think about how painful those words are to hear when you have been exposed to a situation like that before. People may kill people but an assault rifle insures that they can inflict maximum damage in a short amount of time. Think about your words, actions, and what you can do to make sure gun control is no longer just a thought but a real thing.

My thoughts are with the families who were victims of Sandy Hook and all those affected by gun violence.