A Call to End Gun Violence

Yesterday, after the news broke out about the mass casualty school shooting, I was taken back to when I was in the sixth grade and I heard about the first mass casualty school shooting at Columbine High School and ever since then, school shootings have happened again and again. Also, ever since Columbine, there has been a call to end gun violence and to have gun legislation put in place. There has also been a call for more to be done on mental health detection. But still, we keep hearing about these sad events.

This morning as I was listening to the radio, the speaker asked what happens to the youth when this is their reality? I will answer this, we accept it as the norm even though it should not be the norm. I can also remember a time when I heard of another school shooting right around Christmas time like five years ago. It was a normal day, and I went to see one of the Hobbit films on opening. Then I heard about the tragedy. I was shocked and the fast food restaurant I went to was not far from Columbine High School.

I entered High School when the events of 9/11 occurred and that was also the day of my sister's birthday. I know kids can be cruel but to be blamed on your birthday for events that were put in motion by a group of terrorists is just wrong. I know that this has nothing to do with gun violence but this too has shaped my life. I know it shaped everyone's life but just as reform took place with the airlines after 9/11, it is also time to make better reforms around gun control and making our school's safer for our children to go to school.

The same phrase was stated yesterday, that if you notice something out of the norm, tell someone. Well, if you have someone that acts as they always have then how do you know if it is out of the norm? Granted, others isolated themselves prior to events but this person created a chaotic scene as students were almost dismissed from school; that is not right.

Well, now they have a new reality that Valentine's Day has been changed for them and that the faculty failed them. They knew about his actions beforehand or that he was capable of something. The student body knew and so did the FBI and yet this was still able to happen. It is great sadness that we as Americans have to deal with this as it is played on our televisions' screens.

It's time that we all say enough is enough, and that we end to end this cycle of violence, especially against our children. They are supposed to be our future but how can they be the future when their education is being interrupted by this endless cycle of bloodshed? It's time to press our senators and representatives to do more for us and to do more for our children.

As President Trump, and others before him, said, no child, no parent should be afraid to send their child/children to a safe place such as school. They have all been right but so far this cycle has continued and it's time to say enough.