Research Article by Brittney Strong

​Stated by a recently published New York Times article, “as of early May, the Gun Violence Archive has counted more than 200 mass shootings in the United States this year.” That’s an outrageous amount considering that we're not even into the year yet, we’re already surpassing 200. At this rate we could potentially surpass the amount of mass shootings that happened last year, in 2022 which totaled up to 636. Although the rate decreased from the highest-ranking year of 2021 it still hasn’t decreased enough for the people of our nation to feel safe and comfortable within the United States of America. These incidents are occurring way too frequently and result in tragic loss for students, faculty, and society.

An aimed gun, Photo by: Max Kleinen (unsplash.com/istockimages)

​The Sandy Hook elementary school shooting on December 14, 2012, in Newtown, Connecticut was deemed “the second-deadliest (school shooting) in U.S. history,” according to the Washington Post, as a 20 year old murdered 26 people, in which 20 of the victims were students between the ages six and ten years old. While the other six victims were adult staff members who were trying to protect the children. As the majority of the victims were children you can probably imagine how much they were looking forward to the holiday that was less than two weeks away as others were looking forward to their aspirations of the future. As these children's lives were taken away too soon, many adults came to realize just how serious this situation is and how important it is to be aware so that we can better prepare for situations like such.

​​School bus at school, Photo by: Jose Alonso (unsplash.com/istockimages)

​Nearly eleven years later, these shootings are still prominent within our schools. The most recent mass school shooting occurred on March 27th, 2023, at the Covenant, a Christian school in Nashville, TN. A twenty-eight-year-old former student “fired off 152 rounds,” per CNN, before fatally shooting three children and three adults. The police were within the perimeter of the building and proceeded inside, going at full speed. The mass murderer was in the school for a whole 14 minutes before the officers found and killed them. This might sound like a long time but it’s actually pretty fast in comparison to past school ​shootings. So maybe there has been improvement within the attempts to prevent school shootings from happening. However, not enough has been done since this is still occurring nearly eleven years later at an elementary school as well. This has to be terrifying to parents of young children to witness this continuously happen across the country not guaranteed that their child will be safe at school. It’s unfortunate, the idea that anything like this could happen at a school, where most people feel is one of the safest places that a child can be in.​ 

​In 2018, people all around the United States came together to peacefully protest for better gun control laws, this rally became the March for our Lives movement. These dedicated people took the movement all the way from the Washington Monument to the United States Capitol Building in Washington DC. This began after students who were victims of the Parkland, Florida shooting that happened earlier that year felt that enough was enough. They expressed their concerns for our nation and desperate need for this to stop via their communities and through social media networks. The hashtag #MarchForOurLives and #NeverAgain began going viral and celebrities started interacting with these posts, using the hashtags and making comments on it themselves trying to influence others to join the fight. If you’re interested in more information on how you can help and get involved visit the website posted below.

March For Our Lives Protest, Photo By: Heather Mount (unsplash.com/istockimages)

Resource: 
https://marchforourlives.com

​Works Cited:
Andone, Dakin. “Nashville School Shooter Fired 152 Rounds during the Attack, Which Was Planned 'over a Period of Months,' Police Say.” CNN, Cable News Network, 3 Apr. 2023, https://www.cnn.com/2023/04/03/us/covenant-school-shooting-nashville-tennessee-monday/index.html.

Cochrane, Emily, et al. “Heavily Armed Assailant Kills 6 at Christian School.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 27 Mar. 2023, https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/27/us/nashville-shooting-covenant-school.html. 
“Mass Shootings in the United States.” Everytown Research & Policy, 3 Apr. 2023, https://everytownresearch.org/mass-shootings-in-america/. 

The New York Times. “A Partial List of U.S. Mass Shootings in 2023 - The New York Times.” The New York Times, 17 Apr. 2023, https://www.nytimes.com/article/mass-shootings-2023.html.

​Vogel, Steve, et al. “Sandy Hook Elementary Shooting Leaves 28 Dead, Law Enforcement Sources Say.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 14 Dec. 2012, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/sandy-hook-elementary-school-shooting-leaves-students-staff-dead/2012/12/14/24334570-461e-11e2-8e70-e1993528222d_story.html.
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