Yet another week of gun violence

According to everytown.org, since the shooting at Sandy Hook in Newtown, CT in December 2012, there have been over 142 school shootings in the United States. That is an average of about one shooting every week. As a result, students, families, and communities all over the country are in constant fear of gun violence and yet another incident occurring.
Just last week, after the mass shooting at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, OR, I got out of class with six messages from my mom, two from my dad, and one from my brother. All of the messages pertained to the shooting. As the only child left in school, they worry about me every time they hear about something like that happening on school campuses.
Before even addressing the issue of gun violence specifically in schools, take a look at the United States. According to UN data, we are about 30 times more likely to die from gun violence in the United States than in Australia, 15 times more likely than Germans, and four times more likely than those in Canada. Americans make up about 4.5 percent of the world’s population, yet own about 42 percent of all the world’s privately held firearms. Reform is years if not decades off. Both the Republican controlled legislature and the billions spent by the NRA on lobbying prevent any substantial reform from occurring.
As college students, we are faced with a difficult situation. Regardless of how prepared our schools can make us, in the event of an actual school shooting, it is unlikely that we would emerge unscathed. Even the best emergency plan cannot prevent senseless loss of life from occurring. Homicides on school campuses by gun violence have remained remarkably common over the past decade while other forms of violent crimes have decreased nationwide. This is evidence of a greater trend.
The society that is being created is a society in which it is difficult for someone to be safe with regards to gun violence, especially on a school campus. As Americans, this issue will not go away. The problem of gun violence needs to be at the forefront of all citizens’ minds until we solve this issue that plagues our country. This has to change. Students ought to feel safe on their own school campuses.
-MAE