Why Sandy Hook Did Not Change Everything

Since 2013, there have been nearly 300 school shootings in America — an average of about one a week. 

(source everytownresearch.org)

As an educator in America that statistic is shocking, saddening and infuriating. I was working in high tech in 1999 when Columbine captured the world's attention. In Littleton, Colorado, on April 20, 1999, twelve students and one teacher were killed by two teenage students. The Columbine shootings rank as one of the worst mass shootings in US history as well as one of the deadliest episodes of school violence. (source CNN).

Like other disasters - the explosion of the space shuttle, John Lennon's murder and 9/11- I remember where I was, what I was doing, and what I felt. On that spring day, I happened to be in Boulder, Colorado visiting one of our field offices. Someone said something over a cubicle wall about a shooting, and we all tuned into the news. We'd all heard of gun rampages, even back in the 1960s, the infamous clock tower shooting at the University of Texas, Austin in 1966. Not to minimize, that was carried out by a 25-year-old on a college campus. But Columbine was different. Children massacring children. What was happening to the world? I was shocked and so very sad. My son was almost the same age as many of the victims. I was worried. I was heartbroken.

After the initial fear and outrage subsided, nothing much changed. Yet, everything had. Santee. Virginia Tech. Northern Illinois University. Too many to name. Hundreds of lives changed. Too many lives lost. Yet, the shootings continued. By December 2012, after a career change, I had been working in education for 7 years. I was teaching fifth grade and the news of Sandy Hook seeped into our classroom. It was horrific. These were babies - many of the victims were kindergartners. What if this happened at my school? I visualized what I would do if a shooter came on our campus, and I know my students did, too. Surely, this would be the wake-up call our country needed to make some meaningful changes to gun access laws and the identification and treatment of mental health issues. Sandy Hook would be a rallying cry. We would not forget. Congress would not ignore the real and present dangers of access to weapons. Surely.

Schools practiced code red drills. District bonds were approved to install fencing and locked gates to elementary campuses. Things changed on a micro-level. Hearings were held on the state, local and national levels. Yet, nothing changed. There have been 186 shootings on school campuses in the U.S. since 20 children and six adults were killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., on December 14, 2012, according to Everytown For Gun Safety, an advocacy group. (source LA Times).

Of course, we were wrong. No gun control measures were passed by Congress. And though many states passed laws restricting access to guns, more states actually made it easier to buy weapons. (Source: Vice.com)

Map of US School Shootings since 12/14/12

How is this possible?

I am sure greater minds than mine have thought about this. But here is what I think. It's all about the Benjamins.

Hear me out. When a plane crashes, the FAA gets involved immediately. They study the disaster from every angle and real changes are made to procedure or product. Not to be cynical, but the airlines have a vested interest in making these changes. After all, it was their logo on the tail of the plane. Their lawsuits to settle. Their claims to pay out. They have a financial motivation to make sure it never happens again.

Who has the financial interest in stopping school gun violence? Who is held accountable when a madman (and let's be clear, it is almost always a white male who shoots the gun) fires into a school? His therapist? The person who sold him the gun? The gun or ammo manufacturer? The NRA? No. Guns don't kill people. People kill people. No one other than the shooter, and maybe his parents, are held accountable. So no one financially benefits from stopping the murders from happening again. So no one is putting pressure on our lawmakers to have the courage to stop allowing access to unnecessary firearms for people ill-equipped to handle them properly. So guns keep getting into the hands of children killing children.

And the shock, and sadness and infuriating frustration of inaction remain.

Sadly, I do not see this changing. Our lawmakers simply do not have the will do make the change. So we must. Organizations like the Sandy Hook Promise work to prevent gun-related deaths due to crime, suicide, and accidental discharge so that no other parent experiences the senseless, horrific loss of their child. So that no teacher has to explain to her students that she will do whatever it takes to protect them, all the while knowing she is powerless against an assault rifle. So that no other confused young man will decide that shooting up a school is his only option. 

Be the change.

Reach out and touch somebody's hand, make this world a better place...you can!

In the aftermath of the unspeakable horror and unfathomable sadness of the tragedy at Sandy Hook, we are asking, what can we do? What indeed? Part of me just wants to curl up in a ball and cry for days. But I can't do that. I have kids who need to see me in the classroom tomorrow morning, who need to know that I am there for them.

Last night, I heard the song, If I Could Have a Beer with Jesus, and I wondered what would He say about this? Is it really possible to turn the other cheek?  It is easy to blame the lack of gun control or mental illness, but what can we as a society and as individuals, do to change it?

We can help make it safe to reach out. On Tamara Fisher's blog, Unwrapping The Gifted , she writes "To a Bright Kid With Troubles" "Somewhere in your life you crossed paths with someone who got you even a tiny bit. Maybe it was a teacher from ten years ago. Or a friend from your grade school playground... or mom or dad or a sibling or a neighbor or that teacher who laughed at your joke in the hallway but you don't know his name. A school counselor, a principal, an older cousin, or grandma and grandpa... Yes, you've thought of it. That's the one. That's the person to reach out to. ..." And when they reach out, we need to be there for them.  When someone we know needs help, we shouldn't wait until they are in crisis to reach out and truly make a difference. A friend of mine once told me her advice, "Don't just say, 'how can I help?' Actually show me that you will help by showing up. Do something!"

As a teacher, my heart aches for my students, wondering how afraid they might be to come to school tomorrow. Monday will be difficult for many of our children and staff. I take it as a sacred trust to take care of these children, MY kids. As Angela Maiers states there is no lesson plan for tragedy. My intent is to let the children guide the discussion. I understand that their parents may have shared a little or as much of the tragedy as is appropriate in their home. I will not let my kids discuss the shootings, but I will reassure them that they are safe and loved in my classroom. I will let them know, They Matter.

Jackie Gerstein offers some real, concrete suggestions for teachers on her blog, and says honestly, As horrible as they are, they become teachable moments for students to feel that they count and can make a difference. Activities such as the ones described can help students heal and give students the opportunity to help heal the world. If you are a teacher, I urge you to consider her suggestions.  The one I hope to start my day with is a Sharing Circle: Have a morning circle or group to offer students the opportunity to discuss how they feel about the event. This is not a forum to discussed the details of what happened.  The news does enough of this.  The focus is on feelings.

As my 80 year old mother said to me Friday night, "I am glad that you have a plan, but I am sad that you have to have a plan."

If I could, I would probably teach for free, yet no amount of money they'd ever pay me could cover the value of what we do for our students. It is an awesome responsibility and a great honor. My heart goes out to the staff and families at Sandy Hook.