Guns kill people. So, do spoons, knives, and forks. This isn’t a politically charged article of why guns are needed. This isn’t an article of why gun control is necessary for our society. Whenever a massacre has happened, debates begin to form over whose political agenda is right. People want answers to such a heinous crime and the finger pointing begins.
It's toxic masculinity.
It’s the rise of single motherhood.
It’s what happens when you take prayer out of school.
It’s the parent's fault.
It’s the teacher's fault.
It’s the immigrants.
It's crazy white people.
It's crazy black people.
Its Hollywood’s fault for glorifying guns and making it seem cool to kill.
It's mental health. It’s the police for not protecting the innocent.
It's why America is going to hell. On and on, we find ourselves in a circus of opinions trying to cipher through and justify an act of hatred.
Sometimes the answer that we seek isn’t always what we want to hear. This was another act of pure evil in the heart of an individual. There isn’t a true explanation for these actions and we can’t truly prepare ourselves for these moments. We could allow teachers and school administrators to carry a firearm for safety. We could teach students how to be mindful of their surroundings and what to do in case of a potential gunman attack.
At the end of the day, no matter how careful we are in being proactive towards these situations, you could never truly prepare for what is going to happen. It is just like fire drills. We practice year around what to do when a fire occurs; the bell rings, line up at the door, and “peacefully” walk in a straight line outside.
We practice what to do under safe and calm circumstance. Students become so conditioned thinking that this is another drill that when a real fire happens and true danger is imminent, their reaction becomes completely different.
No matter how much preparation and planning goes into stopping school terrorism, evil will always find a way to wreak havoc on society.
So, what do we do?
Should we allow guns in schools for safety? Should we plan out drills for what to do when the school/campuses are under attack? Do we sit back and pray hoping the gunman skips over your classroom?
Each case is different and every state has different laws the oblige by. We must be proactive in voting for leadership in our schools, districts, and country that will make it a priority to instill safety in the minds of the people there will be no more innocent blood loss due to passive reactions and ineffective procedure.
Leadership that will not use the underfunding or low budget as an excuse to not hire certified counselors or nurses to deal with mental health. Leadership that understands something must be done whether it is gun control or the right to carry in a school district.
How many more innocent people must die before leadership takes School, campus, church, clubs, movie theater, shopping center, and daycare shooting serious?
