The toll of inaction
This week has been a bloody, emotionally draining affair. The two mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton saw dozens of dead americans, and…
This week has been a bloody, emotionally draining affair. The two mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton saw dozens of dead americans, and have brought the conversation of gun reform back into the public eye. Sadly, there have also been conversations related to ICE raids in Mississippi that left 680 people arrested, many of whom were parents, with children left stranded at school. Less focused on was the deadly shootings in Chicago, that left hospitals and police departments stretched beyond their capacity.
This is the toll of inaction, not just by politicians, but by all of us. We have seen hundreds of innocent people, may of them school children, massacred due to the unrestricted threat of gun violence. We have allowed our politicians, and the news media to move on from these stories of violence, in order to satiate their need to avoid accountability and to protect their revenue sources.
On their own, these tragedies don’t seem directly related. Gun violence and immigration issues just don’t seem connected. The sad truth of the matter is, that these issues are directly tied to a system that embraces white supremacy and toxic masculinity as part of the status quo. The raids in Mississippi came after Koch Foods (no relation to the Koch brothers) settled a 3.6 million dollar lawsuit related to sexual harassment and discrimination. It’s likely that ICE saw the details of the suit, of latino workers organizing to fight for their rights, and then targeted them. Whether Koch Foods had a direct hand in tipping ICE off or not, the result is the same. This will drive workers to keep silent, out of fear of further repercussions. The Dayton shooter has a long history of violence against women, and killed his Transgender Brother first. His toxic masculinity was likely the driving force behind the murders. We all know about the El Paso shooters manifesto and its direct relation to Trump’s racist filled rhetoric, and Greg Abbott’s dog whistles pointing to a “latino invasion”.
Unlimited access to firearms, and a culture of toxicity and racism makes the United States a terrifyingly dangerous nation for people of color, women, and anyone that would challenge the status quo. Open carry laws in Texas, and other states, make it impossible for people to determine if someone carrying an assault rifle is just a radicalized gun owner “exercising their rights” or a a radicalized gun owner that is seeking to commit horrendous acts of violence.
While our politicians avoid responsibility for a lack of progress in gun reform 92% of the nation supports background checks, safe storage laws, and red flag laws that would stop some of the violence facing our nation.
Don’t be fooled though, unless we directly hold leaders and our society accountable for normalizing racist rhetoric, and accountable for enabling toxicity in our men, we will never truly address the real problems in our society. We must also ensure that all of our friends, neighbors, and family members remember that every election is important. Local laws and ordinances can be used to ensure the removal of toxicity and racism in our schools, and our cities. That won’t happen as long as apathy cripples us into inaction. The power lies in us to make major changes, we just have to remember to use it.
References:
Stories Of El Paso Shooting Victims Show Acts Of Self-Sacrifice Amid Massacre
Some died trying to protect a loved one or newborn baby from a hail of bullets. Others were killed alongside their…www.npr.org
Dayton Shooting Lasted Just 32 Seconds and Left 9 Dead
The shooting in the Oregon District in Dayton, Ohio lasted just 32 seconds and left nine people, plus the gunman…time.com
Mayor Lori Lightfoot rips Ivanka Trump's comments about Chicago's deadly weekend: 'I'm not going to…
Before her inauguration as Chicago's mayor, Lori Lightfoot visited the White House to meet with Ivanka Trump and begin…www.chicagotribune.com
With 680 undocumented immigrants arrested across Mississippi, one mayor asks 'What happens to the…
It was the first day of school in Morton, Mississippi, Wednesday, and many undocumented parents and their children went…www.cnn.com
ICE Raids Miss. Plant After $3.75 Million Sexual Harassment Settlement
Today, ICE carried out what is believed to be the largest immigration raid in decades when they detained 680 workers at…l.facebook.com