Thoughts and Prayers.
At the time of this post, the United States has had 214 mass shootings in 2022 and more than 17,300 people have lost their lives due to gun violence.
The US has far more lax firearm laws and policies compared to other countries — the federal right to own a firearm is woven into the constitution via the Second Amendment. Gun laws and regulations also vary from state to state: some states have more restrictive laws, while some allow for much greater firearm ownership rates for protection and hunting.
Here's the thing: America's fascination with guns has taken a turn: firearms have since become one of the leading causes of death for Americans of any age, and, according to the Giffords Law Center, they're also the leading cause of death for children below the age of 18.
On May 24, 2022, 18-year-old Salvador Rolando Ramos fatally shot nineteen students and two teachers, and wounded seventeen other people at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. This came after he shot his grandmother in the forehead at home, severely wounding her.
On May 22, 2022 Daniel Enriquez, a 48-year-old Goldman Sachs employee from Brooklyn, NY was fatally shot in the chest as he sat in the last car of a Manhattan-bound Q train by alleged gunman, Andrew Abdullah.
On May 14, 2022, a mass shooting occurred in Buffalo, New York, at a Tops Friendly Markets store. Ten black people were killed and three other people were injured at the hands of accused gunman Payton Gendron.
On and on and on.
Each time, elected officials, celebrities and others take to social media platforms to express pain and anger. The angst lasts a few days. We all move on for a bit and then the cycle repeats.
The Cycle.
Some have used the power of their platforms to amplify that the time for action is now. After the Texas shooting, San Francisco Giants manager Gabe Kapler said he won't be going out onto the field for the national anthem. "I don't plan on coming out for the anthem going forward until I feel better about the direction of our country," Kapler said. He really goes IN on his personal blog.
Also in the wake of the Texas massacre, both the Yankees and the Tampa Bay Rays used their Twitter and Instagram feeds to post facts about gun violence rather than posting anything about the game between the rival teams.
The Yankees’ Twitter account has 3.6 million followers.
Their Instagram account has 2.9 million.
And Coach Steve Kerr of the Golden State Warriors forcefully spoke out in favor of gun control ahead of his team’s Western Conference finals game.
https://youtu.be/TRBPzx_lXBg
I can't help but think about the consequences Kolin Kaepernick faced when he took a knee during the anthem to call attention to the issues of racial inequality and police brutality. His protest proved to have lasting consequences. Despite having previously led his team to a Super Bowl appearance, he was not signed after opting out of his contract following the 2016 season.
All said, at the end of the day, a good deed is a great one and I can't be mad at these institutions for demanding that this country does better. I just wonder will it all make a difference and when. For our sake, I hope it does sooner rather than later.
