[JSR] Stuck on Repeat

“3….2….1! Happy New Year!!” 2018 seemed hopeful and joyful until “Bang!” The first shooting of 2018 was on January 20th, 2018 in Winston Salem, North Carolina. This marked the first shooting out of 23 school shootings in 2018 so far which is about one school shooting per week for the average.

School is supposed to be a place where students learn and prepare for their future, but if there are shootings almost every week, how can students feel safe? Jasmin Yoon from West Ranch High School shared, “Because the shootings are non-predictable, I don’t always feel safe at school. Therefore, my school has lockdown drills once a semester so that students are prepared when there is an actual shooting.” Yoon continued with her comment, “I feel terribly sorry for victims of the school shooting because they are around my age and they might have been a person who can make a difference in our world. But one cruel shooter taking away one person’s life obviously is not right.”

The Parkland shooter in Florida on February 14th took seventeen victims’ lives and wounded sixteen students. Then, another mass school shooting a few weeks ago occured on May 18th in Santa Fe, Texas in which ten students were killed. Just a week later, there was another shooting on May 25th at Noblesville, Indiana. Students were victimized and no one can predict the next shooting.

Students will shiver in nervousness not knowing what to expect because the shooting can happen anywhere and anytime. It is as if the United States is stuck on a repeat of shootings, with one shooting per week on average. In order to stop this, of course, we would need stricter gun control laws. However, it is also important to look at every factor that can result in a school shooting including technology, mental health, school policies, and education as a whole. If not, there will be more shootings and there will be fewer future leaders of America. If the fear of students cannot be weakened and the safety of schools, in all aspects, cannot be strengthened, who then is going to be responsible for the future of America?