Guns, Guns, and more Guns

Guns, Guns and More Guns

I’m disgusted. Two mass shootings happened within days of each other in our nation in Buffalo, New York and Uvalde, Texas. In both incidents the shooter was armed with a military style weapon.

After the massacre at the grocery store in Buffalo, I was initially glad the police were able to apprehend the subject. Later, sadness kicked in as I saw pictures of the victims. Tears rolled down my cheeks. Those faces felt eerily familiar even though I didn’t know them personally. Seeing the smiles on those brown faces reminded me of people I knew: my aunt, my Sunday school teacher, and even the man who used to talk with my dad on his way home from work.

These citizens were going about their lives as the would any other day. They had no agenda. But the shooter, a young white male, had an agenda to kill black people. With a confession of being a white-supremist coupled with his belief in the replacement theory, his confession should be enough to prosecute this case accordingly. It is unnecessary to bring to the discussion the mental health care system in America.

In Uvalde, Texas, a young man killed close to 20 humans at a grade school; most were children. In this case, he killed himself before he could be apprehended.  Parents carried out their normal routine of dropping their children off at school. Unbeknownst to those parents, they would return to identify their children’s bodies ripped to shreds by an automatic weapon used by the deceased shooter. In some situations, DNA testing was necessary to identify some of the children.

This senseless loss of life made me pause. This could be me at the grocery store running from bullets. Or my grandchildren could become victims while they are getting an education.  Grocery stores and schools should be safe spaces.  So, in response, will I just use my social media platforms to post, “thoughts and prayers” with praying hands and sad faces? Or am I going to work to hold legislators accountable for making sure these incidents don’t happen again?

I decided to go with the latter; it wasn’t easy. I decided to focus on Ohio State House Bill 99, which will allow teachers to carry a gun in school after 24 hours of training. Before the recent vote on this bill, I read all I could and wrote letters to Rob Portman and Sherrod Brown. I emailed and left voice mails for members of the Ohio State Legislature and the Ohio Senate, as well as members of some of the committees sponsoring the bill. The Govenor, as expected, signed the bill.

I’m sad and I’m angry like most people in America who generally don’t want mass shootings to continue in public spaces that should be safe for us all. Gun control seems to be a massive mountain that can’t be conquered.  It started small and created a ripple effect with impact.  Let me be clear, I am not against gun ownership. But I don’t think we need AK-47’s in the hands of anyone who wants one. Especially without a background check.

Gun reform and gun violence seem to be an issue we may be on the journey with for some time. Make no mistake.  It is clear that guns make money for someone, but it’s not the people buying the guns. If you want to do something, make a call, or send an email, join an advocacy group, or just become educated on the issue. Knowledge is power. 

Below are some links to information that has been helpful for me.

The Trace, Gun Policy.org, Brady United, Gun Violence is a Racial Justice Issue

Ways United Methodists can take a stand against gun violence