Politicians offer platitudes. They do not care to do what must be done to stop the next massacre.
 | By Indrani Sen Culture Editor, Opinion |
Like many this week, I've found myself ping-ponging between three emotions: sadness, fear and anger. I'm filled with all three when I think about the 19 children and two teachers who were shot to death by an 18-year-old who stormed into Robb Elementary School armed with a semiautomatic rifle. |
As I checked on my own children sleeping in their beds Tuesday night, I thought of the empty beds in Uvalde, Texas. The next morning, as I hugged my first-grader and fourth-grader goodbye and sent them off to their artwork-decorated classrooms, I terrified myself imagining how easily a gunman could walk into their elementary school. And when I read about the political roadblocks that have stymied common-sense efforts to keep weapons designed for war off our streets, that have left us trapped in what Jay Caspian Kang called our "museum of unbearable sorrow," I feel nothing but rage. |
Roxane Gay captured that rage in her essay this week, which pointed out the tragic hypocrisy of calls for "civility" in a nation that allows its children to be gunned down at their desks: |
Time and again we are told, both implicitly and explicitly, that all we can do is endure this constancy of violence. All we can do is hope these bullets don't hit our children or us. Or our families. Or our friends and neighbors. And if we dare to protest, if we dare to express our rage, if we dare to say enough, we are lectured about the importance of civility. We are told to stay calm and vote as an outlet for our anger. |
In the aftermath of a tragedy like this, we hear a lot from politicians about how much they care for the victims and their families. But as Gay points out, "They do not care to do what must be done to stop the next gun massacre or the average of 321 people shot a day in the United States — including 42 murders and 65 suicides." |
That isn't likely to change, as The Times's chief Washington correspondent Carl Hulse explained in stark terms, unless the fundamental systems and calculus of American politics change. But that doesn't mean we can stop being angry, or stop demanding action. As Gay writes: |
On Tuesday morning, at least 19 children's parents woke them up and helped them brush their teeth, fed them breakfast, made sure they had their little backpacks packed. They held their children's small hands as they walked or drove them to school. Those children were alive when their parents waved to them and handed them their lunches and kissed their cheeks. Their lives were precious, and they mattered. |
Here's what we're focusing on today: |
Forward this newsletter to friends to share ideas and perspectives that will help inform their lives. They can sign up here. Do you have feedback? Email us at opiniontoday@nytimes.com. |
Contact us if you have questions about your Times account, delivery problems or other issues, visit our Help Page or contact The Times. |
|
No comments:
Post a Comment