Friday, in a tragedy that has shaken a nation, 26 innocent lives were taken at the hands of a literal madman. My heart breaks for the families of those who were lost, and I ache even thinking about what private hell the shooter must have lived inside his own mind in order for him to take such action against defenseless children and the adults who looked after them.
Being a teacher, this has hit home for me more than I would like. I have tried to block the news reports, and I have tried to ignore the updates, but it simply can't be ignored. The world we live in is a dangerous place, and we as a society have contributed to making it such. With our lack of focus on mental health, our oversight in regard to the security of our children, and our refusal to place responsibility where it lies, we have created a system where these types of things are bound to happen. Where does this cycle stop?
Oh, I have heard the blame placed in countless places. "Where was God?" "We need stricter gun control laws!" "The President is doing a poor job running our country, and he is to blame!" I understand these are simply cries from an angry and confused people, and they come from our mutual frustration and disgust that these massacres continue to happen. But we must realize that not a single one of these sources is at fault here. Failing to care for our children when they need it most is to blame. And as a teacher, that means that this blame lies squarely upon my shoulders.
I don't mean to say that no shooter in history has ever felt loved, or has been shown the support of a loving family, community, or educator. No, this is simply not so. But I do believe that parents and teachers need to do a better job of detecting and recognizing early warning signs of mental illness. I believe that teachers not only need to be sensitive to these indicators, but we need to do a better job of communicating with parents. Although it is not our job or our right to "diagnose" a student, we should be able to offer an open and honest dialogue on what we have observed, and help to point parents in the right direction if they believe they need to seek further help. We also need to be available to our students, and offer them appropriate support when necessary.
School districts also have an overall responsibility to provide proper in-school counseling for students. Many students who have repeated behavior problems do not need constant disciplinary action, they need counseling and reform. Without the proper channels for their feelings and emotions, students will continue to commit offenses, which over time, will become more serious and intense. I also understand that not every individual who has committed vicious and violent acts has been a "typical" student behavior case. This is why teachers and administrators need proper training to identify at-risk behaviors. Not all at-risk students display overly outward signs to the average observer, but a trained eye can make a world of difference in how these students are identified treated. I could go on about this, but there are other issues that need to be addressed.
I believe in the second amendment right to bear arms. I don't believe that this right should be taken away. I come from a family of responsible life-long gun owners. My father built, rebuilt, repaired, and refurbished guns. He loaded his own ammo. He taught my brother and me to treat weapons responsibly and with respect. Guns are never stored loaded in my home. Guns and ammo are never stored together. Our guns are locked securely in a half-ton gun safe, accessible only by code. Our ammo is stored in a separate safe in another location in our home. They are used for sport -- target practice, skeet and clay shooting, etc. -- and for providing food for our family. In our family, animals are killed respectfully to be used only for meals. They are not merely trophies obtained for fun. This being said, I believe there are many, many other responsible gun-owning families, and I don't believe our rights should be revoked due to the negligence of others. Rather than revoking gun rights to stop violence, I think purchasers should be screened, and should receive proper training. Law-abiding gun owners are not the ones committing these crimes... but irresponsible ones may allow access to their guns unwittingly. Train gun owners to operate and store guns more responsibly. Make screenings more thorough. Don't disarm our nation. Those who want to commit a violent crime will find a way, but if the rest of the country is disarmed, will be be able to protect ourselves?
President Obama has not pulled the trigger for a single assault. I believe it's time to stop bashing him. Do I agree with all of his politics? No. Would I agree with all of the politics of a single other leader who could be instated? No. Our country must stop blaming our leaders for tragedies, melt-downs, and shortcomings! We must take responsibility! Have we not elected our leaders to serve? They are doing the best they can, and acting in such a way that they see fit. Even if we do not support a particular person in a leadership position, I fully believe we need to respect the office. We should pray for our leaders, support our leaders, and yes, voice our opinions when we disagree with our leaders, but it should be done in a constructive way! Placing blame for such a tragedy on our President is ludicrous. I hope anyone who may read this can see that.
God also did not cause this tragedy to happen. The actions of a mentally ill and sinful man did. For all of those shouting that "God wasn't present because we have kicked him out!" Please listen to yourselves. If you truly believe in the power of our Almighty God, and in his supreme dominion over all situations on our earth, how can you say that he has been omitted by the rules of man? God does not conform to any man! Due to our free will, and the sinful nature of human beings, violence and crime happens. God has not once in the Bible promised to spare any people from hardship or tragedy. That doesn't make it more easily swallowed, but again, stop blaming God. He did not do this, but he will help put the pieces back together.
Finally, I believe schools need to implement greater security measures. Schools need resource officers. Schools need proper lock-down procedures. This was evidenced today when my school was placed on lock-down drill. My students were to turn their desks over and get behind them in tornado drill position -- that is, crouched on the floor with their heads covered. This merely would make a person a target if an actual shooting was in progress. There has been research after each shooting our country has faced, and it has indeed been found that students who look at shooters or move around have been more likely to be targeted, so this may be where this position has come from. However, each school needs to be looked at individually. What is the layout of the school? What is the geography of the area? Are there windows? What is the placement of classroom exits? How many closets or enclosed storage areas are available? How thick are the doors? Is there a locking mechanism on each door? What material are the walls composed of? We need specific action plans, and we need training in their implementation.
Today as our lock-down drill was taking place, my students were a bit rowdy. I discussed with them during this time the importance of keeping quiet and following directions. I thought these ideals were lost on them. When the all-clear was sounded and students began to right their desks, they suddenly became quiet. Finally, a girl spoke up. "Do you think those kids were crying Friday? How was the teacher able to keep them quiet?" I told her of two stories -- the story of Victoria Soto, who hid her students and gave her life protecting them by telling the shooter they were in the gym. And I told them of the teacher who hid her students and quietly read them stories until the danger had passed. Then the questions continued to come: "Mrs. C, would you leave us if something like that was happening?" I reassured my students that I absolutely would not leave them alone in that situation. I would stay with them and stand in front of them in danger. "Mrs. C... would you come back to school again... if something happened and some of us died?" Wow.. I told him that I wouldn't. And no, I don't think I could. I believe I would have to be subdued and locked up somewhere if I had to experience anything like what horror has happened in Newtown, CT. But the sad truth is, that if measures aren't taken and things aren't looked at honestly and seriously, the massacre on the news won't just be Newtown, CT. The massacre on the news could and will happen in Anytown, USA.
