Many of them dont do a whole lot beyond that.
Ive heard every version of it too:
Its too soonlet the families mourn.
Its too soonwe dont know the motive yet.
Adobe Stock
Its too soonthe FBI needs to assess the situation.
Its too soonwith a litany of other excuses to continue doing nothing.
We as a nation have had to endure mass gun violencetwice within six days.
It solidified something they already knew: You are not safe.
As for Boulder, were still waiting for details about the shooters motive to emerge.
We do know that, according to reports, he used anAR-15style pistol.
How is that for American exceptionalism?
No matter the cause, thatstwo Pulse nightclub shootingsper day.
This is not normal in other nations.
How is this part of the going back to normal process for us?
I refuse to allow this to be my day-to-day.
Its a promise I made right after Drews funeral.
And its a promise my friend Brandon Wolf, who survived the Pulse shooting, has made as well.
A few days after the shooting, we held a funeral service for Drew, Brandon told me.
I didnt want to let go until Id found the right words to say goodbye.
We have bonded over our mutual promise.
How many more times must we be retraumatized?
I discussed this with Brandon the night of the Boulder shooting.
When we get these messages, people are asking how we are holding up, he said.
But then we have to hold our feelings as well as theirs as we navigate through another traumatic experience.
I want to be there for people, but sometimes it becomes overwhelming when How are you holding up?
is followed by Gosh, these headlines are just suffocating.
COVID ends and its back to all this.
Think this time will be different?
So if you feel angry, its because we deserve better.
If you feel sad, its because we deserve better.
If you feel numb, remember that we deserve better than slogging from one collective traumatic experience to another.
The work thatEverytownandMoms Demand Action for Gun Safetydoes is paramount to saving lives.
The time to take action to save lives isrightnow.
I dont want to lose another loved oneno one does.
So the change must begin with each of us doing our part to build a better and safer America.
