Guns.
I feel like my world often revolves around them. I have never fired one, touched one, I haven’t even been in the same room as one, but they always appear in my world.
Photo Credit: CNN
I remember my roommate turning on the news about the high school shooting in Florida. My mind couldn’t help but think about those terrified kids, and the horror the parents faced, not knowing if their child was dead or alive. Just a few weeks ago, I was talking with a friend who had someone they care about in a similar situation. After that I had heard stories around Dubuque, the shooter at Senior high school and then the man at the women’s lacrosse game, threatening them with a gun. Guns just never seem to want to leave me alone.
All these stories, they just keep sending me back into images of when I thought my life was truly threatened and how lucky I have been. No one was harmed during the the threats that occurred at my schools but, the fear was real, and you don’t forget it.
To most people, my story would sound uneventful. No one was killed, even harmed for that matter. Heck the band kids were still practicing during lockdown. Even though the boy was in custody, we were unaware that the shooter was not out there, and that alone was enough to send several of us into a state of panic. The second time we experienced this, it was a bomb that may or may not go off. It’s not a gun but its a weapon and that’s enough for me to mention this.
It wasn’t brought to my attention about about how dramatizing these experiences until I told my story to a professor.I reassured them telling them that it was alright, but it really isn’t. No one should live with the fear of someone possibling walking into your class and taking a shot at you.
In response to recent events, I’ve been hearing a lot of chat that included protests about gun control. In fact my brother was telling me about the silent protest at my high school, but then I heard that a similar protest is going to take place on campus.
Gun control. Not once has anyone asked me on my views of gun control after hearing my story. I can only assume that they believe that I think we need more control over how people get guns, but I never believed that to be true.
Guns were designed to kill, but they are only a tool. They’re like a knife, if miss used they can cause serious damage and harm, but we don’t get mad at knives. It’s how the person uses that tool, thats what causes the damage.
I’m sure a lot of you reading this are disagreeing with what I’m saying. I bet some of you have been in similar situations like me and think the opposite of me, and that’s fine, I understand why but I just need someone to understand where I’m coming from.
When I sat in fear during my lockdown, I wasn’t terrified of the .25 caliber handgun that could possibly shoot me. I was terrified of the boy holding the gun that could possibly shoot me.
*Submitted Anonymously to crux@clarke.edu. Contact Allie or Megan with any comments or concerns.