AUTHOR'S NOTE: I first had a very hard time finding an appropriate title for this article. I didn't exactly know what I was trying to do with this piece at first, but I wanted to use a headline that grabbed people's attention, because this is national news, and thus, an important topic. At first, I thought of entitling this article "The Lone Wolf of the Filth Farm" in accordance with the remarks that the shooter, John Russel Houser, made repeatedly in online chat rooms and call-in talk shows. But this is not the right place to put the gunman in the spotlight. Eventually, maybe next week, I'll write an article studying the "Lone Wolf" complex Houser and other gunmen have shared. So, I decided to go with something that was simple, yet complemented the message I was trying to send. I hope I haven't deceived anyone.

On July 23, about 20 minutes into a 7:10 p.m. showing of the new romantic comedy, "Trainwreck," a middle-aged man stood up in his seat towards the back of the Grand Theater 16 in Lafayette, Louisiana, and started shooting at the people in front of him, ultimately killing two and injuring nine. He then attempted to escape the theater, but was cornered back into the theater, where he ended the madness by shooting and killing himself.

As I was taking all of this information in through various posts on Facebook, I caught a passing glance at a post someone had posted in the social network group for The New School Undergraduates Admitted Students Class of 2015, from a woman named Joy Alicia Raines. It read:

"Don't know if ya'll heard about this or not, but tonight there was a shooting in my hometown at a movie theater. A couple have died and several are injured in critical condition. This is just so shocking because Lafayette really is such a safe and quiet town. I never thought something this terrifying could happen so close to home. Please keep this town, those injured, and their families in your prayers.

‪#‎prayforLafayette‬

Thanks :)"

I immediately reached out to her, because even though I wasn't going to be her classmate anymore, since I wasn't going to The New School anymore, I couldn't imagine going through something like this myself, let alone going through it alone. So, I messaged her, and we talked. We talked about past shootings, the importance of more effective gun legislation, and stranger danger, because it's not every day that someone from the other end of the country reaches out to you.

After a while though, I offered up a suggestion. I asked her if she would be willing to let me interview her and ask some questions about the tragedy that happened on her doorstep. I understood that it could come off as a complete violation of trust—some kid from an online magazine reporting about an hours-old mass shooting, another blemish on America's history—and he's already asking for a juicy scoop? It's downright shameless and disrespectful. Joy's response was swift and merciless:

"Oh my God, yes you can."

We promised to keep in touch with each other with new developments, all the while doing research and jumping on new leads whenever they came forth. I wrote up as many questions as I could think of and sent them to Joy for her approval. She'd send me links to articles about the victims or blog posts about how tragic the whole ordeal has been for the community. We worked at this for three whole days, and this is what we've come up with.

These are strictly the opinions of someone affected by a tragedy, the 204th of its kind within 204 days. Granted, Joy's opinions are not shared by everyone in Lafayette, but her grief is. It is real, and it hurts us all, just as the shootings in Aurora and Sandy Hook have. There is no right or wrong way to answer these questions, only how she sees fit to answer them.

Derek: It was revealed on July 24 that two people were killed, and nine more were injured, in the Lafayette shooting. Did you know any of the victims?

Joy: Jillian Johnston was very good friends with a family friend of mine and performed with him a couple of times. Although, I didn't know her by name, I saw her at her store, Red Arrow Workshop a few times. Two of the victims were also family friends with one of my best friends.

D: The identity of the shooter, John Russel Houser, was also revealed. Did you know him?

J: I did not know the shooter. He was a drifter from Alabama, and I did not recognize him.

More on the gunman can be found here.

D: What was going through your mind when you first heard about the shooting?

J: When I first heard about the shooting, I was just so surprised that something so horrific could happen in my hometown. This city is so safe. I couldn't imagine something this terrible happening so close to home.

D: It has been shown that sales of guns and ammo skyrocket after tragedies such as Lafayette and Sandy Hook. Why do you think that is?

J: I think that after tragedies like this happen, people think it's easier to buy a gun and fight back instead of fighting for legislation to change. After the shooting, one of my friends commented "get a conceal and carry," instead of questioning why Houser had a gun.

For more on the increase of gun sales after mass shootings, click here.

D: In your opinion, what would be a possible solution to fix the growing problem of gun violence in this country?

J: We need people to recognize that guns are not a necessity for common civilians like it once was during the American Revolution when the Second Amendment was written. Guns should be limited to law enforcement. There are plenty of countries (Australia in particular) that ban the use of guns and have peaceful communities.

For an interesting counter-argument, click here.

D: What is the one thing about this tragedy that has you disillusioned most?

J: This situation opens my eyes to disaster and the reality that bad things can happen to anyone—which is very strange to realize because this community is so safe and peaceful.

D: The governor of your state, who is also a presidential hopeful, Bobby Jindal, went to Lafayette after the shooting and offered his condolences, saying, “When these kinds of acts of violence happen in a movie theater, when there's no real good reason why this kind of evil should intrude on the lives of families who are just out for a night of entertainment, I know a lot of us are horrified and shocked…This is an awful night for Lafayette. This is an awful night for Louisiana. This is an awful night for the United States." What did you think of his quick response?

J: I think his response was very polite and kind for what happened that night. I only hope that when it comes time to write legislation to end gun violence, he makes the right decisions and chooses the path of less guns and helping those with mental illnesses.

You can read more about Governor Jindal's response here.

D: Governor Jindal also said that the shooter, who legally bought the gun he used in the shooting in Alabama, would not have been able to buy the gun in Louisiana, yet Louisiana has some of the loosest gun legislation in the country. What are your thoughts on that?

J: It's just not true. If you go to a gun show in Louisiana, you can buy a gun without a single background check. And in the state of Louisiana, there are gun shows almost every week of the year. Louisiana is a "gun loving state." I honestly don't know that much about the state's gun laws besides gun shows, but I do know that with the extreme amount of gun shows in Louisiana and lack of background checks at them, he could have easily bought a gun here.

You can read more about this response by Governor Jindal here.

D: What, in your opinion, is the acceptable way for the public to react to a tragedy like this?

J: I think that right now, while the tragedy is so fresh in everyone's minds, we should come together as a community and pray. A lot of #PrayforLafayette postings have been going around on social media and people have gathered at the shooting site for rosaries.

D: Staying on the topic of community, I noticed you didn’t include offering condolences as an appropriate response. Are condolences a kind gesture, or are they not enough?

J: Condolences aren't enough because evil happens all the time—people have and always will experience tragedies in their lives. But when something like this—something that could have been prevented—is such a prevalent part of human tragedy, change must occur. The only reason this tragedy occurred is because of poor law regulations and lack of assistance to those with mental illnesses; it's not the first and it won't be the last... Unless we do more than just grieve—unless we try to change the world for the better.

D: What should our next step be in preventing something like Lafayette from happening again?

J: We need to make sure that guns do not get into the hands of people with mental illnesses specifically, but also that people with mental illnesses are treated and do not desire to kill others. On top of that, the gun purchasing system needs to be stricter and background checks need to be more enforced.

Wherever you stand on gun control, it's hard not to notice that there is a growing problem with gun violence in this country. In this year alone, there have been 204 mass shootings over the past 204 days. For now, there's really nothing we can do. We can grieve with Lafayette, pray for them, offer our condolences, but when the time for grieving ends, condolences, as Joy said, are not enough.

One of the greatest things about our country is that we can go to our representatives in office when we have a problem and make our voices heard. Today, we have a problem, and it is our duty as citizens to make our voices heard. I strongly urge whoever is reading this to communicate in any way with your congressman or representative in office—write, call, email, however you can—and let them know that this is an issue that needs to be faced. Joy was right; this could happen anywhere. And we owe it to the people of Lafayette to make sure a tragedy like theirs never happens again.