by Hena Hussain ‘20

Yet another shooting occurred at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, claiming lives that should not have been lost. Both sides of the political aisle can agree that acts of violence like this are completely unjust and horrific for the American people to experience. One thing that our leaders cannot seem to agree on, however, is how we should react after such events. While many move to take action in order to prevent these attacks, others, chiefly pro-gun Republicans, push back against reform. They say that we shouldn’t rush to “politicize” shootings and should show respect by waiting and giving our condolences.

However, condolences don’t prevent shootings; policy does. Politicians talking about gun control legislation after a tragedy like this one aren’t being insensitive, they’re policy-makers observing a serious issue and taking action to change our country for the better. By waiting, we will inevitably go on with our lives and forget about the shooting until it happens again. Not everything is political, not everything has two sides. Tragedy is tragedy, and its prevention should not be deterred just because politicians don’t want to lose the next election.