Page 2 - Twice-Told April 2018

Page 2 Twice-Told Tale

Linking Arms

By Jay Nagabhairu

T doesn’t happen in any oth- from the violent and illogical cycle of
his
er country. “We will be the generation simply grieving after a shooting and then
to end gun violence!” “Not to another continuing to do absolutely nothing about
school, another city, another state!” All it. We live in a state where the state Con-
of these messages of activism came gress had the nerve to strike down even
from Orlando high school students, discussing a possible ban on assault weap-
including myself. Powerful messages ons, right in front of hundreds of the high
like these have been historically heard school students who had fallen victim to
by political leaders and public figures the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Doug-
such as activists or even Hollywood las. The problems and solutions are so
personalities. What do all of these peo- obvious yet there has been an unacceptable
ple have in common? They can buy degree of inaction, something for which
alcohol. They can rent a car. They are the National Rifle Association is responsi-
adults. Society has often placed the ble for.
burden of fixing problems and main- In 2017, the N.R.A. donated more
taining solutions onto those who have than three million dollars to the Senator
been given the most power. Nonethe- Marco Rubio. The N.R.A. is one of the
less, in particularly pivotal moments of most powerful lobbying groups in our
our country’s history, those without country. Under the guise of protecting Sec-
power have demanded change. Wheth- ond Amendment rights, the N.R.A. is in-
er it be the Civil Rights Movement, the volved in an intricate yet lucrative network
LGBTQ+ movement or the feminism (Above) The Orlando community, with the Pulse shooting still fresh in its mind, jumped on the of corruption. If we are to see safe schools,
movement, those who had been si- chance to come together in response to another gun-related tragedy. Many victims came out in then the era of the N.R.A. trading children’s
lenced and taken advantage of were support of the Parkland students, relating to their trauma with heavy hearts. All photos courtesy lives for gun commerce has to end. The
precisely the Americans who spear- of Mrs. Elizabeth Leckie. N.R.A. uses its influential donation power
headed change. Unfortunately, we live to convince politicians to not only kill ef-
in an America where teenagers, kids forts toward real gun control such as
who have just begun to explore the adult world, are owners are screened poorly updated, but also that if the heightened background checks or a ban on assault
forced to deal with the traumatic realities that they check takes longer than three days the gun is sold re- weapons, but to also to interject distraction. The same
could be shot and murdered. gardless of possible criminal records. Despite these Florida Congress that refused to even discuss banning
There is a misconception that only liberals or systematic problems, the far larger problem is that there assault weapons, recently approved legislation that
those who identify as Democrats are to gain from gun is absolutely no regulation on secondhand gun sales. would allowed teachers and school administrators to
control measures. The obvious reality is that changing Roughly 40% of guns sold are through unregistered arm themselves with weapons. As I said in my speech
the situation in our country is something from which all sellers who do not conduct background checks through at The Orlando Y outh Against Gun Violence’s youth
Americans can benefit. The reality is that school shoot- events such as gun shows or on the internet. Second rally, “The answer is not more guns. The answer is less
ers do not consider who people voted for in the last Amendment activists are often worried that gun control guns!” We should not ask teachers who are dedicated to
election before murdering them in the classroom. At the measures will unconstitutionally impede law abiding academia to hold weapons and dive in front of bullets.
end of the day, the argument over gun control often- citizens from owning their weapons. However, why is The answer is not turning our schools into prisons or
times boils down to what component of the issue poli- that in this country, the theoretical concerns of gun our society into one of constant war like tension. These
cymakers should focus on. Some argue that it is a men- owners are worth more than the lives of the hundreds of are nothing but distractions from the real issue, that is
tal health problem. Some argue that the process to get a people who lose their lives to gun violence? and always have been guns.
gun is too easy. The truth is that it is both. The United States is the only country at our Although it can be easy to be discouraged and
A semi-automatic weapon is a gun that does economic and developmental level that lets children think that there is nothing a single individual can do to
not require the user to reload the gun but rather simply and adults alike be consistently murdered in anywhere change a national epidemic, it is precisely the opposite.
pull the trigger again. This means that these weapons from a kindergarten classroom to an office boardroom Only in a sea of individuals willing to stand up for not
are already capable of shooting multiple bullets without meeting, without doing anything meaningful to stop it. only themselves but their peers, their teachers, their
even changing the clip. These weapons can be legally Every other country at the U.S.’s level of economic and parents and their community will change ever really
and relatively easily turned into full automatic weapons political stability implemented effective gun control occur. Even a high school student from a random part
through purchasing a bump stock. Weapons like these following their first few, if not the first, instance they of Florida can enact real change through real action.
far to often fall into untrustworthy hands. Under both saw of mass gun violence. Countries that effective gun Call your representatives, your Senators, your commu-
state and federal law, individuals purchasing a weapon control include Britain, Austria, Denmark, Spain, nity leaders. Partake in movements such as the nation-
from registered gun distributors such as gun shops are France, China, Japan, Australia, Sweden and Canada. wide march that occurred on March 24, 2018. Do not
required to undergo a background check. Part of the That being said, I am glad to see that through be complacent but rather take action because we really
problem is that not only is the database via which gun teenage activism, our society is starting to see an escape are in the fight for our lives.

(Above) Protestors showed up at 4:30P.M. to the rally, and were treated to five local (Above) The beautiful thing about the rally was the variety of ages and backgrounds of the par-
speakers adamant in their opinions about gun control. Many brought signs and held them ticipants. Whether the voice belonged to someone in elementary school or middle aged, black or
up proudly during particularly passionate parts of the speeches. white, male or female, all came together to say: “Never Again.”