After the shootings at the Annunciation Church in Minneapolis and Evergreen High School, Colorado, the political argument about gun laws has been brought up again. While schools have initiated protocols and safety measures, is there more that could be done about the issue?
Following the recent tragedy, there was an outcry of citizens demanding for a change in gun safety laws. Several school officials and students have advocated for the issue.
“It’s just heartbreaking, really… so much of that could be prevented in a lot of different ways,” Owen Elsasser said.
Elsasser, a student at Wayne State College working to get a major in Elementary Education, made his stance clear when discussing the challenges and the procedures that should be followed.
With recent shootings, lawmakers have attempted to fix these issues. The “Bipartisan Safer Communities Act” was signed into law on June 25, 2022, by former President Joe Biden. This act created new charges in illegal trafficking firearms and funded violence-prevention and intervention programs, according to a Department of Justice article from June 25, 2024.
Although the signing of this law was a significant step forward, it didn’t fully address gun violence and the serious causes that lead to these horrific massacres.
“I think our government needs to just crack down on gun laws, not kind of, like, blame it on any one type of person,” Elsasser stated. “I just think there needs to be more laws.”
Elsasser also said that people who are selling weapons should take precautions when it comes to people who don’t have proper training and that there should be further precautions for adults who have children of their own.
Other popular possible solutions include educators receiving firearms, metal detectors and educators being mandatory reporters for suspicious students.
The National Education Association has been against the idea of allowing teachers to have firearms, which they said could heighten the safety risk.
To compare our country’s attempts, we can view other countries that have created regulations on guns, which seem to have worked reduced gun violence.
After the 1996 Dunblane massacre, the United Kingdom placed strict regulations on firearms, which have dramatically decreased the number of gun-related deaths in the United Kingdom, according to an article written by Iain Overton, Executive Director of Action on Armed Violence.
This demonstrated that issuing and signing strict regulations on firearms does help with decreasing the number of gun-related deaths and increasing safety for civilians.
Despite evidence of methods that could reduce gun violence, “thoughts and prayers” remain the most constant solution.
When discussing how lawmakers can seriously reduce possible incidents, the topic continued around identifying the major warning signs.
Educators should notice these signs, and students should report these same signs so educators step in and ensure that the individual, who could be a current or former student, is in a safe space.
This ensures that they have someone to speak to if they have events going on that could be traumatic in some way.
Although there are many factors and barriers that make it difficult for stricter gun regulations, there should be clear intentions and attempts to reduce the number of gun-related deaths and shootings that occur in the United States.
America deserves a greater stance on protecting the youth, and educators who are there to support and guide their students towards greater futures.
