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Yet another school shooting, scrolling through the news lying next to my peacefully sleeping baby I read this horrific news!
A chill ran down my spine and I felt the pain that I had never felt before for the parents who lost their precious children. I could feel holding my baby close to myself as if trying to secure him from an evil that may jump out of this news piece.
Growing up I was taught that school is my second home. Like my home I not only learn new things at school but also can feel completely safe. Reading through this news and all the other news about school shootings or stabbing be it US, or India or Pakistan or any other country for that matter has made me realize, what I was taught, what I always believed in is not true anymore.
A school might have been safe for me but it is not a safe haven for my child anymore.
Right before I started writing this article I was listening to the interview of a mother who lost her 14 year old daughter in the Parkland Florida school shootout. She was crying and pleading to the president to make the guns rule stricter in US and making schools more secure for children.
She said she spent last 2 hours preparing for the funeral of her beloved daughter. Daughter who she gave birth to, daughter she nurtured for 14 years, daughter she loved to pieces, daughter who will never come back again.
Get To The Root of The School Shootings
Since 2010 there have been 146 different incidents of gun use within school premises alone in US, some of them were open fires and included not only students but teachers too. Out of these 146, 8 incidents have been notified only in 2018 and we are sitting in February the entire year is left to be seen.
Everyone seems to ask the same question why doesn’t government of the strongest country on this planet passes a simple law so that guns do not reach just anybody and everybody. And everyone also knows the answer to the same question that is NRA’s spending power in every election campaign is enormous. Every government throughout the world is overpowered by some or the lobby which is understandable as money matters but is it more important than lives of our little children.
Every time I think of the shootings inside a school campus the first thing that comes to mind is what if it was someone I knew what if it was someone of my own, and that makes me wonder have our politicians become so ruthless that they have lost the power of questioning, what if?
Keeping this thought aside I also tend to wonder that America being the strongest economy of the world doesn’t spend enough money to secure the school campuses, why? If the gun lobby is strong enough and it’s not easy to pass a law against it than that same gun lobby that spends millions towards helping a person winning an election or voting against a bill can be forced to secure the school and college campuses.
But than I thought to myself would that solve the issue, the answer was obvious ‘NO’. The constitution exists to empower the government to give a better life to a country’s citizens not a better life to a select few. All because a select few have spent money to help you win the election does not give you or them a right to play with the lives of those who believed in you and voted for you expecting better life for themselves. The basis of The constitution is right to life, how can monetary benefit take that away.
What makes this tragedy exponentially sad is that it is born of negligence and ignorance.
No one is asking the government to shut down gun manufacturers.
The only demand everyone has, every concerned parent has to please make sales of guns more responsible, make and make school campuses safer by putting up adequate measures. For strict background and mental health checks.
Not only our children deserve the best education but also safe education. Please stop sacrificing our innocent children for a few bucks.
We talk about our kids being empowered but first and foremost it is our job as a collective society of adults to protect them. We cannot control the world, but we can take measures to make sure our children are safe. This choice is being taken away from parents as guns are made easy to get. And automatic guns at that!
Children are our future, they are precious. I pray for all the families who lost their children and hope this time at least few from the political class would have a change of heart and wonder ‘what if that was my child in that school…?’
Vinni Mishra is a corporate professional presently residing in Glen Allen, Virginia. She originally belongs to Jaipur, Rajasthan (India). She completed her masters degree in geography from Rajasthan University. She started her career as a corporate professional pretty early around the age of 18 with GE Capital and was until very recently working with Suntrust Mortgage in Glen Allen. She is an expectant mother and is enjoying her time off from work awaiting the new member to her family. She has a passion for writing and her writing is influenced by the rich culture of Rajasthan which is famous for its traditions and heritage that have been passed along generations.