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Around 10:30 p.m on Sunday, Nov. 13, a student at the University of Virginia shot and killed three students and left two injured. The university immediately ordered students to shelter in place for nearly 12 hours until the suspect was found. The University of Virginia Police Department identified the gunman as Christopher Darnell Jones Jr., who remained at large until late this morning when he was taken into custody, according to UVA Police Chief Timothy Longo Sr.

Jones, 22, was a member of the university’s football team. Police say the three students killed were also football players, including D’Sean Perry, Lavel Davis Jr. and Devin Chandler. Jones shot them while they were on a bus pulling into a UVA parking garage after returning from an off-campus trip.

This incident is yet another example of why gun laws must change. This past July, Global Health Policy announced that firearms became the number one cause of death for children in the United States. It’s difficult for me to understand how one shooting alone does not make all citizens in the U.S. want change. I hope this will make people realize the importance of this issue and that it doesn’t disappear if a shooting hasn’t happened in a while. The violence can’t end if the country doesn’t enact stricter gun laws.

According to a CNN article, the U.S. is the only nation that has more civilian guns than people. There are 120 guns for every 100 Americans. Many countries also have stricter regulations on buying guns. Citizens in Singapore must follow a strict process for purchasing a gun and crime rates in the country are some of the lowest in the world. The background check to purchase a gun in America takes only two minutes. The U.S. should implement a new and extensive background check that requires a valid reason to purchase a gun. The right to bear arms is a part of the Constitution but so is the right to live.

Unfortunately, severe incidents of gun violence and mass shootings are not enough for government officials to take real action in changing gun policies in the United States. Nikolas Cruz shot and killed 17 students at a high school in Parkland, Florida in 2018 but this seemingly was not enough. Salvador Ramos shot and killed 17 children and two teachers at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas but legislators still didn’t take enough action. The list goes on and will continue to grow as politicians who dismiss the issue are elected. And the recent reelection of Republican Gov. Greg Abbott in Texas is heartbreaking news for families of the Uvalde shooting victims. Abbott has continuously ignored their pleas in the fight to change Texas gun laws.

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“Unfortunately, 21 people dead doesn’t change peoples’ minds,” Jazmin Cazares, the sister of Jacklyn Cazares, a victim in the Texas shooting, told the Texas Tribune.

Abbot claims that implementing stricter gun laws is not “a real solution,” and says that mental health resources should be the focus. In other words, Abbott refuses to see the real issue, the easy access to guns and shifts blame elsewhere, which is dangerous to those struggling with mental health. Abbott exemplifies those who assume mental illness is the cause of gun violence and dismisses the real facts.

A study about the relationship between mental illness and gun violence by the Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence explains that the U.S. has much higher rates of gun violence than other countries while having similar rates of mental illness. The study also states that people with mental illnesses are more likely to be victims of violence, not perpetrators. Urging for more mental health resources in response to gun violence only fuels fear and stereotypes against those with a mental illness, which could lead to people avoiding mental health resources for themselves.

Even if a person exhibits warning signs that they may harm others or has the potential to, little is ever done. It seems that action is only taken once people are killed. We have to stop sitting back and waiting until more people are killed to do something.

Christopher Darnell Jones Jr. was already a known threat to UVA before the shooting occurred. The university was alerted in the fall that Jones said he possessed a gun. Authorities did nothing to further investigate him, so three lives were lost and hundreds of college students are now traumatized.

“I’ll try to do better next time,” the school’s chief of police, Longo, said in a press conference.

Mass shootings are the most publicized and traumatic events involving firearms. The facts state that the rate of gun deaths in the United States increased 33 percent from 2011 to 2020. On average, 40,620 people die and 76,385 are injured in the U.S. due to gun violence and it costs the country $552.2 billion per year.

Growing up in New York City, I had to practice lockdown drills with my classmates and teachers by hiding under desks in the corner of the room where we were not visible from the door’s window. Sometimes my fellow classmates and I were unaware if it was real or just a drill. It’s saddening that such young children need to practice extreme safety measures in case of a threat or shooting.

Children should not have this fear while sitting in class every day. Neither should college students. Last year, a Syracuse University student was arrested for possession of firearms on South Campus. This problem affects all of us.

In 2018, I participated in the national school walkout against gun violence. At 15 years old, I was not as educated as I am now about the issue but hearing student speakers share their own trauma and experiences related to gun violence made me want to actively use my voice for change. Staying silent on issues like this is almost as disappointing as those who disagree with the enforcement of stricter gun laws.

Government officials won’t acknowledge my voice on its own. Students should not dismiss the issue. The national walkout happened in 2018 but gun violence has continued, if not gotten worse, in the past four years. The conversation cannot end until the government takes action and enforces stricter gun laws.

Jean Aiello is a Sophomore magazine, news and digital journalism major. Her column appears biweekly. She can be reached at jdaiello@syr.edu.

Published on November 15, 2022 at 8:36 am