After the latest mass shooting in Texas, the United States, which claimed the lives of eighteen young children and three adults, the Vice-President of America Kamala Harris makes a public statement, "enough is enough." While talking about the tragedy that an incident like this causes, Harris made it clear that one should now have the courage to take action against crimes like this.
She said, "Our hearts keep getting broken. We have to have the courage to take action." This public statement is in connection with the latest shooting that took place in Uvalde, Texas, where an 18-year-old gunman spurred violence. It is considered to be the worst shooting at an elementary school since the 2012 Sandy Hook attack in Connecticut. There twenty children and six staff were killed.
The incident that took place on Tuesday has increased the pressure on the politicians of the United States to take action against gun violence, which is very rampant in America. This has to do with the ubiquity of firearms. This is the eighth mass shooting in the United States this year.
Suggested Reading: Who Is Lauren Boebert? The Gun-Rights Activist And Congresswoman
Texas School Shooting
According to the Everytown gun control group, this shooting came 10 days after another 18-year-old had murdered 10 African Americans at a shootout in New York. The President of the United States Joe Biden said, "I had hoped, when I become president, I would not have to do this, again." He has taken the vow to overcome the US gun lobby and tighten the gun ownership law.
Texas has the least restrictive gun law in the US.
As per the 2021 wide-ranging law signed by Gov. Greg Abbott, there was no requirement for Texans to get a license to carry handguns and it allowed anyone above the age of 21 years to carry one. Abbott had described it as "the strongest Second Amendment legislation in Texas history."
Yet the data shows the grim reality of gun violence in the country. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that the number of gun deaths has increased "historically" in 2020. The US has 19,350 firearm homicides in 2020, which is an increase of 35 percent from 2019. The number of incidents of mass shootings has also increased. Data showed that since 2009, there have been 274 mass shootings, which have resulted in the death of 1,536 people and 983 wounded people.
Twitter has also been taken over by people who are condemning the gun violence and seeking a watertight system to stop the mass shootings. Selena Gomez wrote, "Toady in my home state of Texas 18 innocent students were killed while simply trying to get an education. A teacher killed doing her job; an invaluable yet sadly underappreciated job. If children aren't safe at school where are they safe?"
While another person, who is apparently a teacher in Texas wrote, "The issue is not procedure and it's not lack of awareness. We have drills multiple times a month for things like this. THE PROBLEM IS GUNS & GUN CONTROL. Kids should NOT have to mentally map out an escape route at school." They also said, "Greg Abbott & Ted Cruz I hope you know how vile you both are. Disgusting."
While Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tweeted, "There is no such thing as being “pro-life” while supporting laws that let children be shot in their schools, elders in grocery stores, worshippers in their houses of faith, survivors by abusers, or anyone in a crowded place. It is an idolatry of violence. And it must end."
As per reports by US Media, the suspect who allegedly took lives of so many children and adults in the school had entered the school premises after killing his grandmother at home. Reportedly, he had bought two assault rifles for his 18th birthday. This poses the obvious question-- Are American gun laws so weak that kids can shop for them as birthday presents?
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