Gun control needs to be prioritized by elected officials

Alhi Leconte/ Staff Writer

This past Valentine’s Day was unfortunately filled with much more tragedy than love.

Seventeen people were killed and 14 more were wounded at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, FL by a gunman who was a former student at the school. Yet again, an incident of gun violence sparks a national conversation on mass shootings and what should be done to prevent them.

Following this disaster, the nation is reviving the neverending gun reform argument that always comes after mass gun violence occurs, but never leads to any actual change. There are people calling for a complete ban of all guns to people with mental health problems and access to guns. On the other hand, there are also people calling for more guns in gun free zones like schools.

The first thing political figures do after mass shootings is release statements offering “thoughts,” “prayers,” and “condolences” as if that does anything to solve this issue.

This is the 19th school shooting in this country in 2018. We haven’t even reached two full months of the year.  Thoughts, prayers and condolences have proven to be empty and meaningless because nothing has been done to prevent lives from being taken like this.

Many politically conservative individuals like political commentator, Tomi Lahren say that this tragedy should not be made political and blame politically liberal people of pushing an anti-gun agenda.

A conversation of how to make sure less people get murdered by gun violence is absolutely necessary. Protecting the lives of the people of this nation is not a partisan issue, but a nonpartisan one. Finding solutions and preventions as fast as possible is to benefit the safety of the people of this country.

“The reaction of Democrats to any tragedy is to try to politicize it. They immediately start saying we have to take away rights of law-abiding citizens — that is not the answer,” Republican Senator Ted Cruz said in an interview with Fox News.

If the shooter had been in this country under DACA, an immigrant, or a refugee, then conservatives would immediately use that as a reason to push their immigration and border security policies. President Donald Trump, without hesitation, would have tweeted about wanting his wall to be built. It’s unquestionably disgusting to pick and choose when murders matter to you.

Conservatives continue to make this a mental health issue when it is more of a gun reform issue. Mental health is not the main issue.

Far too many elected officials who draw attention away from the main issue at hand have received millions of dollars from the National Rifle Association (NRA). Many lawmakers with ties to the NRA don’t seem to have any plans to denounce guns after the Parkland school shooting. In 2014, the NRA reported that Florida governor, Rick Scott, who is in high standing with them, “has signed more pro-gun bills into law in one term than any other governor in Florida history,” but even he expressed interest in imposing more gun restrictions in his state after the Parkland shooting.

In a press conference addressing the mass shooting, President Donald Trump said he pledges to confront mental health. The unfortunate leader of this nation, who has received millions of dollars from the NRA, is avoiding the main point which is gun reform.

“When these things occur we often find that there is serious mental illness in the perpetrator, but it’s very important at the same time to recognize that the vast majority of people with mental illness are not dangerous individuals” Jonathan Comer, the director of the Mental Health Interventions and Technology Program at FIU’s Center for Children and Families said.

There is no reason why a 19 year old with a history of mental health issues should have been legally able to purchase a rifle almost similar to what our troops carry.

Although conservatives continue to blame mental illness, the reason the gunman was able to obtain the firearm is because of the lack of gun control laws. “It is true that there is a mental health crisis in the country” Comer said. He stressed the importance of the national conversation of mental illness.

Comer also said that the officials who bring up mental health after these tragic events should back that up with funding for mental health programs and not use the issue just as rhetoric. Primarily making mass shootings an issue of mental health is not the way to go. Mental health would not be used as a primary reason for these shootings if we had gun reform and strict background checks.

CNN reports that 12 of the deadliest mass shootings in US history since 1949 have happened in this decade. The deadliest happened just four months ago. Churchgoers, concertgoers, clubgoers, moviegoers, and schoolgoers as young as six years old have lost their lives this past decade in mass shootings.

The government keeps failing to do what’s necessary to protect our lives. Elected officials keep proving that they don’t care about this deadly epidemic harming the lives of the people of our nation.

The only way to move forward is for all officials in public service to acknowledge this as an gun control issue.

 

DISCLAIMER:

The opinions presented within this page do not represent the views of Panther Press Editorial Board. These views are separate from editorials and reflect individual perspectives of contributing writers and/or members of the University community.

 

 

Photo by Brandon Day on Unsplash.