Again.
Again and again.
This time, America's latest mass shooting turned a cherished July Fourth parade from a scene of patriotic joy into one of fear and death.
The rapid bursts of a high-powered rifle brought the chilling reality that no one can be sure they are safe, anywhere, to one of the nation's most unifying gatherings.
In that instant, Highland Park joined Uvalde, Columbine, Newtown and Parkland and a long list of cities and towns known across the country for the massacre of innocents in a gun violence contagion that makes the United States an outlier in developed societies.
It reflected yet another scene of normality shattered by a mass shooting. In this case, six people who simply went out to celebrate America on its birthday are dead. More than two dozen – aged 8 to 85, according to doctors – are injured.
July 4 parade slaughter again shows nowhere is safe from America's mass killing contagion
(Stephen Collinson. “July 4 parade slaughter again shows nowhere is safe from America's mass killing contagion.” CNN. July 5, 2022.)
And once again, massive investigations into the crime will begin, the nation will mourn the unspeakable tragedy, and devout believers will pray for the families and loved ones killed and injured in the senseless massacre.
But, in the aftermath of yet another mass shooting, all of this is not enough.
No longer can we refuse to confront the epidemic of gun violence that threatens every innocent human being in America. We must study evidence-based solutions and pass new measures to prevent future bloodshed. I understand no one reform will stop all gun violence; however, I am sickened by the continuing lack of action needed to begin sensible reform.
I have actually become tired of Christians who answer such tragedies with pleas to God to stop the killing and then do nothing more. That is not enough, not nearly enough. The deadly and angry intentions of those with firearms cannot be “prayed away.” Nor will I ever believe that God intends humans to helplessly accept these vicious murders.
We must no longer be a sanctuary of access to a Second Amendment that does not protect those who simply wish to live in peace. The amendment belongs to all, not just to some. Many conservatives claim it for themselves: they insist in unrestricted rights supported by gun manufacturers, the NRA, lobbyists, and Congresspeople who benefit from their profitable association.
Why must we live our lives fearing those who should not even have access to firearms? It is as if the continual assault of pro-gun propaganda – now sexy and testosterone-based – has inured an adoring gun culture to the ill effects of putting weapons of mass destruction in the hands of criminals, crazies, and killers.
We now live in a robust gun culture populated by many who refuse to assume the negative effects of their gun worship. Once again, after this bloody 4th of July 2022, they will prefer to ignore the obvious – the gun is part of the deadly equation. No solution can possibly ease the violence unless access to firearms is addressed … and, unless actions are taken to keep deadly weapons from those bent on death and destruction.
I have waged a fight to take even simple, symbolic steps to call attention to the need to consider the true meaning of the “sacred” attitude toward guns in our culture – a need to separate facts from myths and to find compromise in the political, cultural, and religious views about American firearms. We need to be safer, not just live in hopes that we and our loved ones survive a life where free availability and lack of restriction prevail.
As totems of power, guns have been part of the salvation in our collective history. Who can deny the role of firearms in settling the frontier, securing our freedom from tyranny, and winning necessary wars? I understand the pride and connection.
Yet, any divine providence today must be viewed anew. Consider that religion interacts with race, and far-right militias employ power and bigotry in “heavenly” disguises. And, also consider that we live in unsettled times when some believe traditional American values are under attack. They see the gun as protection from an unseen enemy threatening their precious way of life. They also think any challenge to gun ownership is unpatriotic.
And, for God's sake, the emotion and mental state of the nation is and has been failing for many years – especially that of young people.
According to Mental Health America (MHA):
In 2019, just prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, 19.86% of adults experienced a mental illness, equivalent to nearly 50 million Americans.
Suicidal ideation continues to increase among adults in the U.S. 4.58% of adults report having serious thoughts of suicide, an increase of 664,000 people from last year’s dataset. The national rate of suicidal ideation among adults has increased every year since 2011-2012. This was a larger increase than seen in last year’s report and is a concerning trend to see going into the COVID-19 pandemic.
A growing percentage of youth in the U.S. live with major depression. 15.08% of youth experienced a major depressive episode in the past year, a 1.24% increase from last year’s dataset. In the bottom-ranked states, up to 19% of youth ages 12-17 experienced major depression.
Over 2.5 million youth in the U.S. have severe depression, and multiracial youth are at greatest risk. 10.6% of youth in the U.S. have severe major depression (depression that severely affects functioning). The rate of severe depression was highest among youth who identified as more than one race, at 14.5% (more than one in every seven multiracial youth).
Over half of adults with a mental illness do not receive treatment, totaling over 27 million adults in the U.S. who are going untreated. In Hawaii, the bottom-ranked state, 67% of adults with a mental illness did not receive treatment. Even in Vermont, the top-ranked state in the U.S., 43% of adults experiencing a mental illness were not receiving treatment.
The percentage of adults with a mental illness who report unmet need for treatment has increased every year since 2011. In 2019, 24.7% of adults with a mental illness report an unmet need for treatment.
Over 60% of youth with major depression do not receive any mental health treatment. Even in states with the greatest access, nearly one in three are going without treatment. In Texas, the bottom-ranked state for this indicator, nearly three-quarters of youth with depression did not receive mental health treatment.
Nationally, fewer than 1 in 3 youth with severe depression receive consistent mental health care. Even among youth with severe depression who receive some treatment, only 27% received consistent care. In Tennessee, the bottom-ranked state, that rate is as low as 12%. 65.6% of youth in Maine (ranked 1st) received consistent treatment, which is 16% higher than Vermont (49.7%) which is ranked 2nd.
(“The State of Mental Health in America.” https://www.mhanational.org/issues/state-mental-health-america. Mental Health America. 2022.)
In reality, “our constitutional right” does not exist in a vacuum. We cannot treat it with detachment during the proliferation and worship of guns. In other words, the Second Amendment has consequences. The true patriot fights against armed mobs of destruction and defies acts of murderous gun mayhem; that patriot does not blindly support a piece of legislation and render all reform dead.
It is clear what is wrong with this detachment. While most Republicans think they’re showing their toughness by preventing restrictions on guns, this abstinence has become a terrible weakness. Even discussion of the need to consider reform is often choked by those with a gun mindset.
The rage, resentment and extremism in 21st century America is undeniable. Also undeniable is the fact that so many people are asked to compress their person-hood into succinct lines and images. It is no wonder that these often end up including guns – America’s most potent symbol of masculinity, power and self-determination. What about those who use the gun to exert control and even to kill in the name of their perceived grievances?
We no longer live in a frontier where the gun helps us reckon with social problems. Yet, that myth still perpetuates violence as an answer to economic inequality, to crime and punishment, and to living a life where packing a weapon and standing your ground is deemed necessary for tranquility … all in a modern culture that reveres the unarmed Sheriff of Mayberry and the single, pocketed bullet of his deputy Barney Fife.
Maybe, just maybe … if people would seek solutions other than defending a lie: a falsehood that holds a constitutional amendment is untouchable and sacred, we could all work together to defeat gun violence. Still, in my county – Scioto, Ohio – leaders refuse to consider what rescinding a designation of “Second Amendment Sanctuary” may symbolize to a community caught in the throes of denial.
Conclusion
The nation's birthday in 2022 will now be forever remembered as the day a 22-year-old with social media postings of violent gun imagery went on a deadly rampage … and the truth that his father, a longtime deli owner who previously ran a failed campaign for mayor of Highland Park, “liked” a tweet his son had made that read: “Protect the Second Amendment like your life depends on it.”
Who knew? It was said his family noticed “nothing amiss” and saw “no signs of trouble.” Give me a break. They knew this deranged criminal had no business owning a gun. We all know the drill by now. Denial and regret in the rear-view. It's time to call it what it really “is” – irresponsible, unforgivable behavior on the part of those who worship guns. The operating legal definition is that of “accomplice” – “one who intentionally and voluntarily participates with another in a crime by encouraging or assisting in the commission of the crime or by failing to prevent it though under a duty to do so.”
"For [a] distinct group of gun owners, gun empowerment delivers a sense of meaning to life that neither economic status nor religious devotion currently provide. These owners’ attachment to guns draws directly from popular narratives concerning American masculinity, freedom, heroism, power, and independence. In turn, owners who feel more emotionally and morally empowered by their guns are more likely to think that guns can solve social problems and make communities safer, and that citizens are sometimes justified in taking violent action against the government."
(Mencken FC, Froese P. “Gun culture in action.” Social Problems 2017, 0:1–25.)
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