Introduction
Attention getter: Since 2013, there have been more than 1,800 mass shootings that have occured in the United States; a good majority taking place in schools. According to Vox’s 2018 article on gun violence, in 2018 alone there has been an average of one mass shooting a day (Lopez 1). One 2018 school shooting in particular took the gun policy debate by storm, and this was Anthony Rizzo’s former high school: Marjory Stoneman Douglas in Parkland, Florida.
Benefits: Gun violence in schools is becoming a very severe issue in the United States and the casualties are rising every day. It’s important to understand the seriousness of this trend and how it could happen to anyone. Informing yourself and taking a stand on stricter gun policy could save thousands of lives in the future.
Thesis: The Parkland school shooting motivated survivors to become activists for stricter gun policy and inspired the 'never again' movement.
Preview/transition: I’m now going to explain the Parkland shooting more in depth and then show how it impacted gun policy and inspired this social movement.
MP1: event: Parkland Shooting
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida was described on national news as a safe community with an enrollment of approximately 3,320 students until nineteen year old Nikolas Cruz opened fire the morning of February 14th, 2018 (Schallhorn 1). Cruz used an AR 15 semi automatic rifle that he legally bought the week of the shooting (Lockie 1).
On this fatal Wednesday afternoon, Nikolas Cruz shot and killed seventeen people and left fourteen wounded‒ “five of those fourteen with life threatening injuries” stated Chuck from NBC News. The shooting had a large enough impact to top the charts in many categories. Earl and Schallhorn from Fox News state the alarming truth that this mass shooting made the top ten deadliest this decade and among the top 25 deadliest school shootings (not including college fatalities) since Columbine.
Many insiders agree that the Parkland massacre happened because of the ignored warning signs of Cruz’s diminishing mental health and his easy access to purchase a semi automatic rifle. Cruz was a troubled child growing up, and this reflected into his years of adulthood as he was expelled from Parkland High school due to disciplinary issues shortly before he committed this deadly act. Although the student body was shocked that this could happen to their quiet community, many (including teachers) saw the warning signs and were not surprised. Nikolas Cruz was not trying to hide his problematic behavior, as he frequently boasted to his peers how he had been expelled from multiple schools (Chuck 1).
Because of Nikolas Cruz’s ignored mental health and warning signs with his easy access to purchase a gun, he was able to wound and kill his classmates.
Transition: We will now look at how the Parkland shooting impacted gun policy.
MP2: impacts
Impact 1: Parkland survivors and supporters push legislature for new, stricter gun policy.
Supporters of a stricter gun policy all agree that the easy access and allowance to own a semi assault rifle is unacceptable. Their argument is that why would any average human being, or any at all not involved in the military, need a gun that has the the labels of “assault rifle”, “for military tactics”, or serving the purpose to penetrate and exit because this indicates that this type of gun is very deadly and would be unreasonable to be used for any sort of sport or recreation. According to Brezenski’s 2018 academic journal, there are a lot of loopholes to avoid background checks, one of these being gun shows. Although licensed gun distributors require minimal background checks in order to purchase a firearm, individuals at gun shows can purchase deadly weapons without any sort of background check.
Since the Parkland shooting, many federal policies have been passed and the push for stricter gun policy’s future looks bright. Bacon’s article states how the government is now funding research to discover why gun violence is such a big issue in society, along with the development of security in school that does not involve arming teachers. Because it is so difficult to ban guns altogether, the government is now using incentives to urge states to take background checks for gun control seriously and cutting their superiors’ bonuses if they fail to do so. In addition, Bacon says how Florida’s gun regulations were changed the most. Both houses of legislature in florida passed numerous new gun laws, such as a new law raising the age to purchase a gun to twenty-one.
All of these laws were passed after the occurrence of the Parkland shooting thanks to the push of the survivors and advocates of reform to pass these laws by using social media and going to talk to legislature directly.
Because of the survivors’ valiant efforts, there has been leaps in gun control.
Impact 2: Parkland survivors created the “never again” movement to help create gun reform.
The “never again” movement is a gun reform movement created by the students of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School students one day after the Parkland shooting.This group of students and supporters hope to ban assault rifles all together and make it harder for an individual to obtain a gun. Their primary target/opponent is the NRA (National Rifles Association) which is a group that advocates for gun rights.
The never again movement went nationwide as they received global recognition. Using social media as their platform, they have inspired student walkouts, gun reform, and protests. Totiyapungprasert claims that Cameron Kasky, Alex Wind, and Sofie Whitney, students of MSD, were the ones to create the movement followed by Delany Tarr, David Hogg, and Emma Gonzalez. “The teenage activists went on to appear at gun control rallies, television interviews, and a fiery CNN Town Hall debate where they questioned Florida lawmakers on their ties to the NRA” (Totiyapungprasert, 1).
Maggie Astor from New York Times said that Florida’s new gun policy that the Never Again movement advocated for was the first legal change in over twenty years. Totiyapungprasert also argues how the students’ put together a national walk called “March for Our Lives” that took place in Washington, DC on March 24th, which attracted over 200,000 people and was broadcasted across America.
The nationwide “never again” movement that the survivors created helped create new gun policy laws.
Conclusion
Overall, the Parkland shooting had nationwide effects on how we view school shootings and gun policy.
The Parkland school shooting motivated survivors to become activists for stricter gun policy and inspired the 'never again' movement.
By knowing this information, it is apparent that we, as students and teachers, should educate ourselves on this to make schools a safer place.