how we could we stop school shootings

I'm not claiming to have all the answers and I'm also not sure that this will definitely fix the whole problem, but this is an answer. In this article I will be mainly focusing on the American school shootings because we sadly have the most shootings.

I'm writing this out of frustration. I'm tired of thoughts and prayers being our only response. There's been too many: too many shootings, too many injuries, too many lives lost and too many people traumatized. We need to do something. Yes, prayer is important, but our prayers now need action. What if the answer to our prayers is taking action?

The biggest story was Columbine. It wasn't the first, but it wasn't the last. It was just the first of its kind. Columbine was a failed bombing that turned school shooting. I've always had an issue with the story Columbine more importantly the story Sue Klebold told. She claimed she didn't know anything about the plan. I don't buy that a kid living under your roof and he was depressed with a plan and the tools to carry out the plan and the parents didn't know anything? Or maybe the problem isn't just noticing it's do the parents care?

The first thing we kind of learned was hold the parents accountable when able. This happened at a school shooting in Georgia. Colin Gray, the father of the shooter was sentenced to prison because he bought his son the gun that was used in the shooting. Prior to the shooting there were several warning signs that there were problems with the shooter and his home life. It's not that Colin didn't know, it was that he just didn't care.

In the research for this article I learned a few things. In the Columbine case the parents of the shooters did faced lawsuits from the victims' families which lead to a $2.53 million settlement. There were also lawsuits against the county and school district. The parents of the shooter in the Oxford High School (2021) were convicted of involuntary manslaughter.

I don't want to sound like I'm blaming just the parents. It's not just on the parents it's on all adults. We make the decisions, we vote, we raise them, some of us have jobs in the schools and some of us have a lot of influence in our jobs (school boards, politics, etc.). I'm not mad at the kids that do this, I'm mad at the adults and systems that failed them. If we start holding the system and adults accountable maybe it will slow it down, if not stop it. It's not just the kids and shooters that should be held accountable, it's everyone involved. Noone wakes up one day and decides to this, it's a process. There are signs usually. What are we missing in these cases?

There are other things to look at and think about. Like were security measures not followed? Was bullying not taken care of or handled? Are we looking at mental health? Do kids feel like people care?

One thing that we kind of fixed in the Georgia case was that when the news talks about the court case they also talk about the victims. They matter; they deserve to be remembered. Only talking about the shooter make people think doing this will give people the idea that this is how to get the attention they want.

What we really need to do is to pay attention. I know I kind of hard to do sometimes. Its sounds so simple but is it really? Pay attention bullying and your kids moods. Pay attention to the other adults around the school. If you see something or hear something say something.

Also we need to take threats and reports seriously. We also need to do something to about the reports/threats. I would rather us overreact then under react and something happen.

We obviously need to talk about guns. The answer is not taking away guns. The answer is cracking down on illegal guns, stolen guns, gifted guns and gun storage. Legal guns owned and stored by responsible (and sane) gun owners are not the problem. If you have guns lock them up and don't buy your troubled/mentally ill kids guns!

We also need to talk about reporting the truth and only the truth. When Columbine happened, they blamed things that weren't to blame. But the actual shooters were not the bullied dark victims they were painted to be. Also, with this there was Cassie Bernall one of the martyrs of Columbine she wasn't actually a martyr. The details were so hazy that the wrong stories get told but they need to do a correction.

Parents want to move their kids to private or Christian schools after a shooting but this happens there too. Shootings don't discriminate; it just happens at public more often. There was a recent one at a Christian school in Nashville. Do what is best for you and your kid/ family but don't move them just because you think Christian or private is safer.

I don't want anymore parents to receive the "in case I don't make it...." text. On a side note that's why I think phones should be allowed in schools so kids can reach out if this keeps going on.

I would like to end this by listing out the victims.

I may miss some of the victims but this is the list I found.

Columbine High School — April 20, 1999

Littleton, Colorado (13 killed)

• Rachel Joy Scott, 17

• Daniel Rohrbough, 15

• Dylan Herington, 15

• Cassie Bernall, 17

• Isaiah Shoels, 18

• Matthew Kechter, 16

• Lauren Townsend, 18

• John Tomlin, 16

• Kelly Fleming, 16

• Daniel Mauser, 15

• Corey DePooter, 17

• Kyle Velasquez, 16

• William "Dave" Sanders, 47 (teacher)

Virginia Tech — April 16, 2007

Blacksburg, Virginia (32 killed)

• Ryan Clark, 22

• Emily Hilscher, 19

• Waleed Shaalan, 32

• Jocelyne Couture-Nowak, 49 (professor)

• Kevin Granata, 45 (professor)

• Liviu Librescu, 76 (professor)

• Erin Peterson, 18

• Reema Samaha, 18

• Julia Pryde, 23

• Partahi Mamora Halomoan Lumbantoruan, 34

• Daniel O'Neil, 22

• Juan Ortiz, 26

• Minal Panchal, 26

• Maxine Turner, 22

• Leslie Sherman, 20

• Lauren McCain, 18

• Nicole White, 18

• Jamie Bishop, 35 (professor)

• Brian Bluhm, 25

• Daniel Pérez Cueva, 21

• Matthew Gwaltney, 24

• Heidi Henthorn, 18

• Katherine Ibranyi, 19

• Rachael Hill, 18

• Austin Cloyd, 18

• Mary Read, 19

• Caitlin Hammaren, 19

• Zach Petkewicz, 22

• Partahi Lumbantoruan, 34

• Morgan Harrington, 20

• Maxine Turner, 22

• Brian Bluhm, 25

Sandy Hook Elementary — December 14, 2012

Newtown, Connecticut (20 children and 6 educators killed)

Children:

• Charlotte Bacon, 6

• Daniel Barden, 7

• Olivia Engel, 6

• Josephine Gay, 7

• Dylan Hockley, 6

• Madeleine Hsu, 6

• Catherine Hubbard, 6

• Chase Kowalski, 7

• Jesse Lewis, 6

• James Mattioli, 6

• Grace McDonnell, 7

• Ana Marquez-Greene, 6

• Emilie Parker, 6

• Jack Pinto, 6

• Noah Pozner, 6

• Caroline Previdi, 6

• Jessica Rekos, 6

• Avielle Richman, 6

• Benjamin Wheeler, 6

• Allison Wyatt, 6

Educators:

• Dawn Hochsprung, 47

• Rachel D'Avino, 29

• Anne Marie Murphy, 52

• Lauren Rousseau, 30

• Mary Sherlach, 56

• Victoria Soto, 27

Red Lake Senior High School — March 21, 2005

Red Lake, Minnesota
10 killed (including the shooter), 7 wounded

Victims:

• Jeffrey May, 15 (teacher)

• Derrick Brun, 28 (security guard)

• Alicia White, 14

• Nevaeh Reynolds, 15

• Wendy Overby, 15

• Ariel Rios, 15

• Danielle Hooper, 15

• Lindsey O’Connor, 14

• Michelle K. “Mickey” Kills Crow, 15

Jonesboro Westside Middle School — March 24, 1998

Jonesboro, Arkansas
5 killed

Victims:

• Shannon Wright, 32 (teacher)

• Paige Herring, 12

• Stephanie Johnson, 12

• Natalie Brooks, 11

• Kendall Wilkins, 11

Heath High School — December 1, 1997

West Paducah, Kentucky
3 killed

Victims:

• Nicole Hadley, 14

• Jessica James, 17

• Kayce Steger, 15

Pearl High School — October 1, 1997

Pearl, Mississippi
2 killed

Victims:

• Luke Woodham’s mother, Mary Woodham, killed before the school attack

• Kristin Diane May, 16

• Jessica Ann Carpenter, 16

Westside Middle School — March 24, 1998

Jonesboro, Arkansas
(Separate from Heath; listed again because it is one of the major pre-Columbine cases)

Victims:

• Shannon Wright

• Paige Herring

• Stephanie Johnson

• Natalie Brooks

• Kendall Wilkins

Thurston High School — May 21, 1998

Springfield, Oregon
2 killed

Victims:

• Ben Walker, 16

• Mikael Nickolas “Nick” Moser, 16

Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School — February 14, 2018

Parkland, Florida
17 killed

Students:

• Alyssa Alhadeff, 14

• Scott Beigel, 35 (teacher)

• Martin Duque, 14

• Nicholas Dworet, 17

• Aaron Feis, 37 (coach)

• Jaime Guttenberg, 14

• Chris Hixon, 49 (athletic director)

• Luke Hoyer, 15

• Cara Loughran, 14

• Gina Montalto, 14

• Joaquin Oliver, 17

• Alaina Petty, 14

• Meadow Pollack, 18

• Helena Ramsay, 17

• Alex Schachter, 14

• Carmen Schentrup, 16

• Peter Wang, 15

Robb Elementary School — May 24, 2022

Uvalde, Texas
21 killed

Students:

• Alexandria “Lexi” Rubio, 10

• Amerie Jo Garza, 10

• Annabell Guadalupe Rodriguez, 10

• Alyssia “Lisa” Ramirez, 10

• Eliahana “Ellie” Cruz Torres, 10

• Jackie Cazares, 10

• Jayce Carmelo Luevanos, 10

• Layla Salazar, 10

• Makenna Lee Elrod, 10

• Maite Yuleana Rodriguez, 10

• Miranda Mathis, 11

• Nevaeh Bravo, 10

• Rojelio Torres, 10

• Tess Marie Mata, 10

• Uziyah Garcia, 10

• Xavier Lopez, 10

• Jose Flores, 10

• Jailah Nicole Silguero, 10

• Alithia Ramirez, 10

• Eva Mireles, 44 (teacher)

Irma Garcia, 48 (teacher)

Santa Fe High School — May 18, 2018

Santa Fe, Texas
10 killed

Students:

• Shana Fisher, 16

• Sabika Sheikh, 17

• Jared Black, 17

• Christian “Riley” Garcia, 15

• Kimberly Vaughan, 14

• Angelique Ramirez, 15

• Ann Perkins, 64 (teacher)

• Cynthia Tisdale, 63 (teacher)

• Aaron Kyle McLeod, 15

• Christopher Stone, 17

Apalachee High School — September 4, 2024

Winder, Georgia
4 killed

Students:

• Mason Schermerhorn, 14

• Christian Angulo, 14

Teachers:

• Richard Aspinwall, 39 (teacher and football coach)

• Christina Irimie, 53 (teacher)