We the people, united in heartbreak and outrage…
Today marks the 15th public address our President has given that is in response to a mass shooting in the United States. Early this morning a mass shooting, over 50 injured and 50 killed, took place in Orlando, Florida. Most of the country is still in shock. The media is calling it an act of terrorism; the worst mass shooting in U.S history. Connections are being made to ISIS, correlations are being made to other horrific tragedies like the shooting that took place in San Bernadino last Christmas, and the answers are far fewer than there are questions yet.
The biggest question, I think, is why.
Such a question is much larger than this specific instance, because as the record of 15 public addresses over 8 years reflects, terrorism is a very real threat and a genuine worry for every citizen of the United States. This is especially relevant to college-aged students.
We are entering a time in our lives where citizen participation is not only legal - we are able to vote, to participate in the legislative process - but participation is needed to secure the future of our country. Security, however, is clearly something that we lack today and an area in obvious need of reform. As someone whose career interests lie in political science, it is instances like this one that make participation that much more important. We cannot change this routine, we cannot create peace on U.S soil let alone make security improvements, if no one takes the initiative. This is our time, and our country is clearly in need of fixing. As President Obama said in his public address, “we have to decide if that is the kind of country we want to be. Actively doing nothing is a decision as well.”
There is no single answer to the initial question of why these things happen. We live in a world where people like Omar Mateen, who grew up in the same country he terrorized, can gain access to both weapons to harm people and resources to organize a mass shooting. There also is no single answer to the question of how we go about changing this perpetualization of violence. The theme in the media today is terrorism and mass murder, and the sensationalization of violence has become commonplace. As the President said, we are “grasping for answers with broken hearts.” Our country is broken. It is time for our generation to make motions toward a better, safer tomorrow.
My heart is hurting for the families affected by this act of terrorism.
#prayfororlando
