A few days ago, I stepped into the local movie theater with a friend, excited to enjoy a few hours off campus. When we got into the dark theater, I became increasingly anxious for no apparent reason. I quickly realized that I was thinking about the possibility of someone in the room having a gun.
Later that night, seven states away from where I live, a terrible act of violence occurred. Yet another massacre on US soil and no one seems to know how to handle it. Many people are angry, many people are sad, but overall, no one seems to have any ideas about what we can do to stop these acts of violence. Only one thing has become clear to me: America is scared.
I never thought I would live in a country that would become numb to instances of incredible violence. Yet, today, my news feed was filled with articles about the recent massacre in Las Vegas. Thousands of people started the night with good music and good company. Hundreds of people ended it with physical scars. 59 people didn’t live to see the sunrise the next day. And millions of Americans are afraid.
I have found that I go through the same internal psychological process each time an event like this occurs. First, I read up as much as I can on the incident. Usually, my initial reaction is a combination of shock and disbelief, followed by relief that myself and my loved ones are safe, followed by guilt that I am thinking of myself when so many others have endured so much suffering. But really, what else can we do but thank God we’ve been spared this time? It has become clear that this horrifying trend of gun violence in our country is not going to suddenly disappear.
So why is it that we, as a country, cannot seem to agree at least on the fact that something needs to be done about this? No other country in the world has seen as much gun violence on such as large a scale as America has in the past 20 years. What are we choosing to do about it?
Large-scale massacres such as this have become more of a political debate than an issue concerning humanity. America has come to tolerate this violence, to simply pass it off as another incident that will be put into our children’s history books. But are we doing everything we can to stop this violence in our country? No. Many people in my generation are lost in this debate. We do not feel as though our nation’s leaders are doing everything they can to fix this issue, but we also do not know how we can help.
We must start talking to one another. Without conversations, we will never be able to work out issues in our country. I find it helpful to talk to peers and loved ones about events such as the recent massacre in Las Vegas so that I can gain different perspectives. As college students, sometimes the only thing that we can do is talk to one another, and stay educated on issues that are happening around us.
Actions need to be taken to end gun violence in America. As frustrating as it is, nothing will get done overnight. Our country is very conflicted on issues such as gun violence. All we can do is try our very best to spread positivity in our own communities, and pray that these small acts of kindness will inspire others to be kind as well.
Many questions remain unanswered, but we must stand strong, lean on each other, and try our very best to build a better environment for ourselves and those around us.
