School shootings are becoming increasingly common and frighteningly normalized. When the Columbine shooting of 1999 occurred, the nation was captivated by the tragedy and the publicity it received parallels only a few school shootings that have taken place over the last two decades.

In the short two months of 2016 alone, there have been four school shootings, the most recent being in Arizona resulting in the deaths of two young girls. Last year, 21 students and faculty died in these tragic attacks. The commonality of these attacks has numbed America to the reality of school shootings. Today, the most frightening thing about school shootings is that they don’t seem as frightening as they used to.

The last time the nation truly stood still for a school shooting was in 2012 with Sandy Hook. After this tragedy, President Obama said "My response is something has to work, and it is not enough for us to say, 'This is too hard, so we're not going to try.' So what I intend to do is I will call all the stakeholders together. I will meet with Republicans. I will meet with Democrats. I will talk to anybody."

Unfortunately, by October 2015 there had been 142 school shootings since Sandy Hook. School shootings are becoming normalized in our society. They have lost their "shock" value, as America has become increasingly indifferent to the news of school shootings.

After the Oregon shooting, President Obama issued a statement saying that "We are the only advanced country on earth that sees these kinds of mass shootings every few months" and that school shootings have become "routine" in the United States.

School shootings should become less common instead of more ignored. The issue will not go away without a decisive action made in unison by the government and the American People. No one, especially not those that are in pursuit of an education, should become victims of such a horrible crime. It is time for America to understand the problem and work together to fix it.