This past week's school shooting once again brings gun control and school safety to the forefront of Americans' minds. We shout for restrictive gun laws or banning guns as a whole. We demand teachers carry guns and we have metal detectors at the entrances of our schools. We pull our children from public schools and put them in private schools or choose to homeschool because they'll be "safe." After a few weeks, and until the next mass shooting occurs, our lives return to normal, and we no longer address this issue of violence. What is missing, however, from this argument is the root cause of mass shootings.
The reality of mass shootings has little to do with guns. Yes, easy accessibility to assault rifles and other rapid-fire weapons allows for more people to get injured or die in a shorter amount of time, but we are unwilling to examine the root cause of this problem. What makes these young men, more often than not white, upper middle class, highly intelligent young men, want to go into public space and murder as many innocents as possible before they take their own lives? What in their consciences says this behavior is okay?
No one seems willing to explore the root of the problem. Is is mental illness? It is true that mental healthcare is expensive and out of reach for a majority of people who need it. It is true that funding for mental health programs has decreased over the past few years. It is also true that those who most need institutions where they can be diagnosed and treated are few and far between, plus they cost more than most families can afford. And it is also true that mental illness is stigmatized; no one wants to admit to having depression or other forms of mental illness. We seem to suffer from a malaise that allows us to pretend everything is fine when it is not.
Nor does anyone want to explore and address the amount of violence children experience in their own lives from early ages. How many children watch rated R horror movies, listen to music with violent lyrics, and are allowed to play violent video games. Even cartoons rated for 7 year old children, like "Ben 10," are filled with violence. Violent TV shows outnumber nonviolent shows. It seems as though there are two or three violent dramas available on network TV each night, many beginning at 7 pm. As a parent, finding a nonviolent yet entertaining television show/cartoon is difficult. I don't want my son watching the type of violence that appears on shows like NCIS: LA or CSI. He doesn't need to know about blood spatter or how to kill with a semi-automatic weapon.
At what point will we, as a society, wake up regarding this issue of mass shootings? Guns are the devices these mentally ill people use to murder large numbers of people. I am not a member or a supporter of the NRA, but I agree that restricting guns doesn't help. Giving teachers guns won't help either. Neither will arming the individual citizen. When we are ready to discuss the issue of mental illness and our violent culture, maybe we will be able to halt these senseless killings.
