by Pa Rock
Citizen Journalist
Today, as many, many Americans know, is the first anniversary of the horrific school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. As a nation we have endured an almost endless stream of deadly school shootings since the 1980's, but the the shooting at Parkland stands out and attaches itself to our national memory and conscience for multiple reasons.
First, with seventeen deaths, it was not the most deadly school shooting in US. History (thirty-two died at Virginia Tech and twenty-seven - mostly primary school students - were gunned down at Sandy Hook), but it was one on the more deadly school shootings in our history - with a body count that exceeded Columbine.
Second, the shooting at Parkland happened on Valentine's Day, forever forging a link to one of our more joyous and festive holidays, an emotional incongruence between hearts and flowers - and murder and mayhem.
And third, the shooting at Parkland has remained in our consciousness because a group of very angry student survivors have refused to let us forget that it happened. They didn't want a week's worth of "thoughts and prayers" before being forced to fade into the background noise of daily life in America. The Parkland students wanted to help bring about an end to school shootings - and they wanted to be heard.
Those young people developed an agenda - one focusing on the elimination of easy access to guns, and they worked tirelessly to spread their message to the American public - and particularly to state and national legislators as well as to other young people - those who were going to school each day with the threat of school shootings forcing its way into heads like never-ending migraines. The young people from Parkland stood up to the NRA and other "gun rights" organizations. They went toe-to-toe with well-paid and seasoned gun lobbyists, they were relentless in bringing public pressure to bear on legislators. They also organized and conducted coast-to-coast voter registration drives with a focus on young, first-time voters.
Another part of the students' agenda was to deny "fame" to school shooters, and they have been persistent in their demands that the media not provide the oxygen of publicity to those crazed individuals who see shooting up schools and killing kids as their ticket golden ticket to achieving a place in history. Last week USA Today had an article which mentioned the Parkland shooter by name, and a couple of survivors immediately published a petition on-line decrying the article - and began heaving controversy toward that national publication. The newspaper learned, as many politicians already knew, that you cross these "kids" at your own peril.
A few of the students from Parkland became better known than many national politicians - young people like Emma Gonzalez, Cameron Kasky, and David Hogg - and have even taken their activism to international levels. Miss Gonzalez is closing in on two million Twitter followers, and Mr. Hogg inflamed "gun rights" activists to the point that some gun ranges were using a photograph of him for their targets. Right-wing journalists have also tried to ingratiate themselves with the NRA by attacking these civic-minded young people as some sort of un-American fanatics.
In the past year Parkland has become synonymous with courage. The students who were at school that day, hiding in closets and darkened classrooms, showed courage as they texted their goodbyes to family and friends while listening to the sounds of gunfire echoing down hallways - and many also took a courageous stand by returning to the school when it reopened. Many showed courage by becoming active in the gun control movement locally and nationally - and forcing a complacent citizenry to actually think about guns and the actual harm they cause, instead of just mindlessly mouthing slogans.
The courage of Parkland is having an impact. The face of the House of Representatives changed dramatically with the election last November, due in at least some measure to an increase in youth voting - and the new Congress appears ready to begin enacting sensible gun reforms. One of the first items into the legislative hopper will be a bill calling for universal background checks. Is it too much to ask that some attempt be made to weed out insane people and career criminals from the gun-buying public? What is the argument for allowing certified lunatics to buy guns?
Other areas that hopefully will soon be address include universal registration (like we have for cars), mandatory liability insurance for gun owners (again, like we have for car owners), and a prohibition on semi-automatic and automatic weapons - like the ones favored by mass shooters to maximize body counts - and weapons with no relevance to the "sport" of hunting.
Getting America to stand up to the gun lobby and enact sensible gun control measures will be a long and difficult haul, but thanks to the courageous nature of the young people from Parkland, we are nearer to that goal than we were a year ago.
And for that we should all be thankful!
Citizen Journalist
Today, as many, many Americans know, is the first anniversary of the horrific school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. As a nation we have endured an almost endless stream of deadly school shootings since the 1980's, but the the shooting at Parkland stands out and attaches itself to our national memory and conscience for multiple reasons.
First, with seventeen deaths, it was not the most deadly school shooting in US. History (thirty-two died at Virginia Tech and twenty-seven - mostly primary school students - were gunned down at Sandy Hook), but it was one on the more deadly school shootings in our history - with a body count that exceeded Columbine.
Second, the shooting at Parkland happened on Valentine's Day, forever forging a link to one of our more joyous and festive holidays, an emotional incongruence between hearts and flowers - and murder and mayhem.
And third, the shooting at Parkland has remained in our consciousness because a group of very angry student survivors have refused to let us forget that it happened. They didn't want a week's worth of "thoughts and prayers" before being forced to fade into the background noise of daily life in America. The Parkland students wanted to help bring about an end to school shootings - and they wanted to be heard.
Those young people developed an agenda - one focusing on the elimination of easy access to guns, and they worked tirelessly to spread their message to the American public - and particularly to state and national legislators as well as to other young people - those who were going to school each day with the threat of school shootings forcing its way into heads like never-ending migraines. The young people from Parkland stood up to the NRA and other "gun rights" organizations. They went toe-to-toe with well-paid and seasoned gun lobbyists, they were relentless in bringing public pressure to bear on legislators. They also organized and conducted coast-to-coast voter registration drives with a focus on young, first-time voters.
Another part of the students' agenda was to deny "fame" to school shooters, and they have been persistent in their demands that the media not provide the oxygen of publicity to those crazed individuals who see shooting up schools and killing kids as their ticket golden ticket to achieving a place in history. Last week USA Today had an article which mentioned the Parkland shooter by name, and a couple of survivors immediately published a petition on-line decrying the article - and began heaving controversy toward that national publication. The newspaper learned, as many politicians already knew, that you cross these "kids" at your own peril.
A few of the students from Parkland became better known than many national politicians - young people like Emma Gonzalez, Cameron Kasky, and David Hogg - and have even taken their activism to international levels. Miss Gonzalez is closing in on two million Twitter followers, and Mr. Hogg inflamed "gun rights" activists to the point that some gun ranges were using a photograph of him for their targets. Right-wing journalists have also tried to ingratiate themselves with the NRA by attacking these civic-minded young people as some sort of un-American fanatics.
In the past year Parkland has become synonymous with courage. The students who were at school that day, hiding in closets and darkened classrooms, showed courage as they texted their goodbyes to family and friends while listening to the sounds of gunfire echoing down hallways - and many also took a courageous stand by returning to the school when it reopened. Many showed courage by becoming active in the gun control movement locally and nationally - and forcing a complacent citizenry to actually think about guns and the actual harm they cause, instead of just mindlessly mouthing slogans.
The courage of Parkland is having an impact. The face of the House of Representatives changed dramatically with the election last November, due in at least some measure to an increase in youth voting - and the new Congress appears ready to begin enacting sensible gun reforms. One of the first items into the legislative hopper will be a bill calling for universal background checks. Is it too much to ask that some attempt be made to weed out insane people and career criminals from the gun-buying public? What is the argument for allowing certified lunatics to buy guns?
Other areas that hopefully will soon be address include universal registration (like we have for cars), mandatory liability insurance for gun owners (again, like we have for car owners), and a prohibition on semi-automatic and automatic weapons - like the ones favored by mass shooters to maximize body counts - and weapons with no relevance to the "sport" of hunting.
Getting America to stand up to the gun lobby and enact sensible gun control measures will be a long and difficult haul, but thanks to the courageous nature of the young people from Parkland, we are nearer to that goal than we were a year ago.
And for that we should all be thankful!
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