Too Many Shootings To Cover
April 21, 2023
In recent years, many Americans developed a diminishing sense of shock upon hearing the news of yet another school shooting, as these incidents have become so normalized in our lives. For many in other countries, just the idea of schools needing to practice active shooter drills feels bizarre.
One of the main contributing factors to the alarming recurrence of school shootings is the accessibility of firearms in the US. Poor gun control laws continue to fail our nation in protecting innocent lives from military-grade weapons designed to inflict high amounts of casualties that shouldn’t be in the hands of civilians to begin with. Guns are currently the leading cause of death for American children. Not cancer, or any other illnesses. Not car accidents. Not drowning in a swimming pool. Guns.
Issues concerning gun laws have been an ongoing debate for many years due to the strong opinions held by various groups of people/political parties. Some argue that people should have the right to bear arms, as it is part of the second amendment, and to remove it would be unconstitutional. Meanwhile, others argue that the second amendment would be considered outdated and irrelevant in the 21st century. The gun law debate is complex, as both sides hold valid arguments.
Although it may be challenging to eliminate guns entirely from American society, it would be reasonable to argue that restrictions on certain firearms should be implemented to ensure public safety. After all, our founding fathers did not have access to the technology we have today, and the weapons available now are significantly more advanced than those back then.
Originally, this article was going to be a report on the Nashville school shooting in which three children and three adults were killed. Since that event, several other stories have been splashed across media networks regarding innocent teenagers being shot or killed for ringing the wrong doorbell, pulling into the wrong driveway, attending a birthday party, and accidentally trying to get into the wrong car.
Gun violence is so common, so frequent, that as a staff, we find that each week we have to pick and choose which story to follow. This, in itself, is an indictment of America’s current state of affairs. We, as a staff, want change so that all people– including youth– are given the chance for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
