America experienced yet another unspeakable tragedy
yesterday, when the 20-year-old mentally ill son of a teacher got his hands on
his mother’s guns. After killing his mother with her own gun, he
blasted his way through an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut and shot 20 children and 6 adults dead before killing himself.
I, like every other American, am devastated by the senseless
killings of innocent children in their own school. As the mother of two small
children - one of whom is almost school-age himself - I can’t help but imagine
the terror those babies felt, and the trauma the survivors experienced. My
heart breaks when I think about the 20 families whose kids didn’t come home
from school yesterday. No parent should lose a child this way. It’s inhumane.
The Connecticut school shooting is only the latest example
of an
unstable person with a gun unleashing mass destruction on innocent people.
According to the
Washington Post, America has seen 6 mass shootings that took the
lives of 5 or more people so far in 2012. Examples include:
April 2, Oakland CA: An Oikos University dropout lined
nursing students against a wall and methodically shot them, killing 7 and
injuring 3.
May 30, Seattle WA: A coffee shop patron with a history of
mental and behavioral problems opened fire after being asked to leave, killing
5 and injuring 1 before committing suicide.
July 20, Aurora CO: A man in riot gear opened fire in a
movie theater during a midnight showing of “The Dark Knight Rises.” He killed
12 and injured 58.
Aug 5, Oak Creek WI: A white supremacist opened fire in a
Sikh temple, killing 6 and injuring 3 before committing suicide.
Sept 27, Minneapolis MN: A man being fired from his job
pulled a gun and opened fire, shooting 6 people dead and injuring 3 before
killing himself.
Gabby Giffords. Columbine. Virginia Tech.
Workplace shootings. Mall shootings. Salon shootings. Movie
theater shootings. School shootings. A shooting at a Las Vegas casino. A
shooting in a daycare parking lot. It’s constant, and it is tragic.
I’ve been seeing a lot of conversation on Twitter calling
for stricter gun control. While the prevalence of guns - and the relative ease
of obtaining a gun - certainly contribute to the problem, I believe guns
themselves are not the whole problem.
The vast majority of mass shootings are carried out by a
person with known mental health issues. These are people who are described as
“different,” unable to relate to or connect with other people. For example:
Jared Loughner,
shooter of Arizona Representative Gabrielle Giffords, underwent a “personality
change” at some point in his life, becoming reclusive and “obsessed” with
conspiracy theories. During his time in jail he was diagnosed with
schizophrenia and declared unfit for trial. He was ordered by the courts to be
forcibly medicated in order to make him fit to stand trial. He pleaded guilty
to 19 counts in August of this year.
Andrew Engeldinger,
Accent Signage employee in Minneapolis who opened fire after learning he was
losing his job, had been growing more paranoid and reclusive in the months
leading up to the shooting. His parents noticed, and tried desperately to get
him some help. He was never diagnosed and never sought treatment; in fact, he
cut off contact with his parents after learning of their efforts to help him.
He died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound after killing 2 of his managers, 3
coworkers, and a UPS deliveryman.
Ian Lee Stawicki, who
opened fire in a Seattle coffee shop after the barista declined to serve him,
had suffered from mental illness for years. He had been more erratic in the
months leading up to his rampage. Despite the best efforts of his family, he
could not be convinced to seek help. According to his father,
“He
wouldn’t hear it,” he said. “We couldn’t get him in, and they wouldn’t hold
him.”
They wouldn’t hold him.
I’m reminded of a shooting here in Minnesota several years
ago, when a man was committed to the psychiatric ward of a local hospital by
his brother-in-law. He was released after 24 hours, having been deemed a
non-threat to himself or others. He walked out of the hospital, drove to his
sister’s house, and killed her – and her entire family, including the brother-in-law who tried to help him.
This right here is the problem. I understand that mental
illness is a squishy thing to deal with. I get that the safety of the general
public must be balanced with the civil rights of a mentally ill person. I know
that not every mentally ill person is going to seek help or secure a diagnosis.
But you know what? I believe that MUCH more can be done.
I believe that this country’s mental health policies
contribute heavily to gun violence. A mentally ill person + a gun = a lethal
combination.
A combination of more effective gun control measures and
comprehensive policies around dealing with the truly mentally ill are what it
will take to curb all this senseless violence. True reform will require
teamwork and transparency:
The
gun lobby,
rather than opposing all gun control, should recognize that free access to guns
really isn’t a good idea; and that arming all Americans also is a terrible idea
(this is not the Wild West, folks).
Our
mental health community,
including hospitals, treatment centers, and providers need to pop their little
bubbles, and work together to share information in order to provide the best
quality mental health services to the people who need them most.
Our government – federal, state, county, and local – need to
develop common-sense mental health policies that will help mentally ill people
while protecting innocent American citizens. In addition, the government needs
to do its part to help keep guns out of the hands of people who will use them
to kill. (There is a difference between having a gun for self-protection and
having one for the express purpose of harming people) Our current policies and
laws clearly are not working.
I call upon
Amy Klobuchar and
Al Franken, U.S.
Senators from Minnesota, and
Erik Paulsen,
Minnesota District 3 U.S. Representative, to step up and start making the
change that is so desperately needed in this country. You are all highly
respected government officials, and your constituents voted you into your jobs
for a reason. We expect you to channel your Minnesota values and stand up for
the Americans you represent. Innocent Americans are dying for no reason.
I do not want to hear anymore how your
thoughts and prayers are with the families in Newtown, CT. Now I want to see
some action. There is no more room for complacency.
Enough is enough.
