It happened again. I’ve lost track of how many times a news alert has popped up on my phone. “Active shooter situation in….” My heart sinks every time. It used to shock me, but there is nothing shocking anymore. It keeps happening because nothing is changing.
I was in high school in 1999 when two disturbed males with access to firearms shot and killed 13 people (and then themselves) at Columbine. It was shocking and unbelievable. It shook the entire nation. How horrible. I didn’t think it could happen “here.”
Nothing changed and it happened again (and again and again and again).
I was a graduate student doing research and teaching at a university in 2007 when a disturbed male with access to firearms shot and killed 32 people (and then himself) at Virginia Tech. It hit close to home. I thought about it when I was teaching in my classroom. I knew which doors locked and which ones didn’t. I tried to figure out what we could use as a barricade in each of my classrooms. How would we exit from windows on the second floor? I was pretty sure it could happen “here.”
Nothing changed and it happened again (and again and again and again).
I had a newborn baby (less than a month old) in 2012 when a disturbed male with access to firearms shot and killed 20 children and 7 adults (and then himself) at Sandy Hook. It was horrifying, but it wasn’t shocking. Having a baby had shifted my perspective. I wasn’t so worried about this happening to me. I was worried about this happening to her. Six and seven-year olds were robbed of their futures. Families lost their babies. It was absolutely devastating and I could hardly stand to look at pictures of their sweet faces. I cried as I held my daughter and watched the news. I imagined her daycare building surrounded by emergency vehicles. I imagined dropping her off to school one day to never see her again. This could happen “here.”
Nothing changed and it happened again (and again and again and again). In a far from exhaustive list,
- 9 people were killed in Charleston in 2015.
- 14 people were killed in San Bernadino in 2015.
- 49 people were killed in Orlando in 2016.
- 58 people were killed in Las Vegas in 2017.
- 26 people were killed in Sutherland Springs in 2017.
- 17 students were killed at Parkland in 2018.
- 10 more students were killed at Santa Fe in 2018.
- And, at least 5 more people were killed in Aurora yesterday.
It happens everywhere. After the school shooting in Santa Fe, I saw a student interviewed on the news. The reporter asked her if she was surprised and she said no. “It’s been happening everywhere….I’ve always kind of felt like eventually it was gonna happen here, too. So I don’t know. I wasn’t surprised, I was just scared.”
Gun violence has become normal (in the United States). It’s scary, but it’s not surprising. Our elected officials act like there is nothing that can be done to stop it. Instead of policy and change, we take active shooter training at work. I learned when to run (you should if you can), when to hide (only if you can’t run), and how to fight (as a last resort). New security systems were put in place at our schools. Doors that used to be open are locked now. Politicians suggest our kids learn CPR so they can save their classmates (which is insane!). My kids do lock down drills and practice hiding in a closet. Our elected officials offer up their “thoughts and prayers.”
We need policy and change. Call your elected officials. Vote for common sense gun reform. If it’s in your means, donate to organizations doing this work. Until something changes, we’ll keep practicing how to be the next victims while families of the current victims grieve.
The Mom Plus 