By Ameara Ditsche
Staff Writer
Thursday, Feb. 14 was the one year anniversary of the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. The Parkland shooting was carried out by a white man shielded by his mental illness plea.
I choose to not say his name and instead focus on the victims, their families and the gun control issues across our country.
Since the Parkland shooting many American teenagers have become more and more involved in the fight against guns. The event sparked multiple student walkouts and protests all around the country. Yet, not much visible progress has been made.
While several states have proposed or passed light control laws or “red flag” laws, we have not seen much leeway in getting guns banned or more difficult to obtain and keep.
Of the several survivors, two rose to notoriety due to their uses of their voice in light of the tragedy, David Hogg and Emma Gonzalez.
David Hogg is continuing his activism and promoting #MarchForOurLives. He has been accepted to Harvard University and plans to enroll there beginning for the Fall 2019 semester.
Emma Gonzalez also remains active on social media fighting for more change with gun restriction. She is currently studying at The New College of Florida. Gonzalez appeared next to Hogg along with other activists on the cover of Time Magazine for their April 2018 issue.
The biggest defense against gun control is, of course the Second Amendment, which promises the right to bear arms. Conservatives, who live up to their name by trying to conserve this verbatim love to protect their guns as a God given right. However, the Second Amendment was written when guns could fire one round at a time and took several minutes to re-load. The mindset used to create that right could not fathom semi-automatics killing a dozen or more people in minutes.
The Second Amendment was also written at a time where morals were vastly different. The original constitution promised no rights for women or people of color. By taking what it is written to heart, they are aligning themselves with discriminatory views.
Another common defense for guns it that they are to protect you and your family. And that people who can’t handle having weapons shouldn’t run for the people who can.
Yes, that is a valid point but not all activists are trying to completely ban guns, just regulate them so people who shouldn’t have them do not have access. There are many alternatives an programs that can keep everyone safe.
Conservatives continuously take the sides of guns over human lives and that is selfish. They do not have the capacity for the minimal empathy it takes to ensure safety of others. It is sickening these are the people running our government.
The student walkouts were simultaneously the best and worst days of my life. It was incredibly empowering to march to the school district and city hall demanding safety in our schools, working to ensure a better future for the next generations. But at the same time incredibly saddening, relaying all the death and sorrow it takes to even bring up the idea of change.
It has been an entire year since Parkland yet we have still not recovered or really worked to ensuring this won’t happen again. Politicians offering their thoughts and prayers is not enough. We need to see change and legislature. Action is needed.
The student protests scared politicians. They finally became aware of how powerful our generation is. They saw who would be voting in the next few years. Let them be scared. Scared into taking action and working to better our country.
Gun control will remain a prevalent issue until no more lives are lost.
