I
remember practice lockdowns
to be some of the most awkward
experiences
of
my
early
schooling. The entire class huddled
into the corner of a dark classroom
so we would be prepared if anyone
potentially
dangerous
entered
the
school. I remember thinking it unlikely
that turning the lights off would be
enough to keep someone from trying to
enter the room.
I thought about what decisions my
teacher would have to make if someone
did find us. Some mornings, when
I walked into school or came late, I
noticed how easy it
would be to enter a
school, even with a
required sign-in.
But
I
never
anticipated
that
school
shootings
would
become
so
common.
As
a
student
teacher,
I
worry
for the safety of my
students. Sometimes I
worry what decisions
I might have to make
when I have my own
classroom, and how
to mentally prepare
my students for this
reality.
Unfortunately,
these
thoughts
are
only
becoming
increasingly relevant
in the United States,
where there has been
little to no progress
in
school
shooting
prevention.
Thirty-
one percent of school
shootings
occur
in
the U.S., with eight
school shootings in 2018 alone. Just this
week, I overheard students in the school
I teach at talking about the recent school
shooting in Florida and what they would
do if there were to be a shooting in their
own school.
Yet, I struggle to explain these realities
to my students so that they take school
lockdowns more seriously, but in doing
so, would I shatter any feeling of safety
that students feel at school? Though
public outrage should be increasing in
response to these shootings, people are
becoming desensitized to the unending
violence that permeates mainstream
and social media.
Even when people post about a school
shooting, or any issue, social media
w“slacktivism” —posting about issues
without enacting real change — is
more prevalent than concrete actions.
Sometimes it seems that people lose
hope in creating change, though many
other countries have taken practical
steps to reduce the occurrence of
school shootings and gun violence, and
have been successful.
As a country, we are stuck in an
unending debate over gun control and
other discussions on how to make
schools safer, such as having more
security, or police officers in schools.
And though to some, having a police
presence in schools is a viable option, the
truth is the people that suffer the most
from this are students of color. These
students are often preemptively seen as
troublemakers and dealt with forcefully
by police officers. Even as an adult, I
find the police presence to be nerve-
wracking as a person of color. I can
imagine my students could have similar
reactions. Some schools hire security
guards for their school instead, which
may be a better alternative, but is not a
preventive measure to keep shootings
from happening in the first place.
National
public
debates
usually
focus on less significant aspects of
the issue, repeatedly asking the same
questions after each occurrence: Who
was the shooter? If the shooter had a
family, why did they still do it? Did the
shooter play violent video games?
Meanwhile,
the
National
Rifle
Association spends millions of dollars
lobbying not only for the protection
of the right to arms, but also for a
lack of regulation on gun purchases.
This system prevents finding concrete
solutions to public safety, but the issue
is often dismissed as unsolvable, as
if it is impossible to
know the factors that
contribute to school
shootings.
Over 16 years ago,
filmmaker
Michael
Moore attempted to
answer the question,
“Why is gun violence
so
prevalent
in
America?”
Is
it
America’s
history
of violence? Is it the
number
of
citizens
that own guns? Moore
concluded that though
these
factors
are
important, the most
distinctive factor in
America, it seems, is
fear. Media outlets
and politicians, only
worsening the issue,
constantly feed the
fear that we have
of
others
in
this
country. It is this
extreme
fear
that
festers in our society,
along with the lack of
gun regulations that
causes
these
mass
shootings to become so prevalent. And
while it is true that we have to try as a
society to reduce the factors that cause
someone to want to pick up a gun to
kill mass amounts of people — whether
it be mental health, extreme racism,
fear or other factors — guns should not
be so easily accessible to people.
It should not take a shooting in
every school in the nation to make
people concerned about the epidemic,
but without any concrete changes
in
legislation
to
prevent
school
shootings, they will only become
more commonplace.
anyone could have a reason to go to the
second floor. As I began to ascend the
next flight of stairs to the third floor,
I looked around. I swore people were
looking at me.
“We know why you’re going to the
third floor,” they seemed to say.
“Why else would anyone go higher
than the second floor unless they’re
sick in the head?” they said.
I powered through and started up
the stairs to the third floor. When I
looked back for the last time, I saw my
extroverted-self staring at me from
the second floor. He’s perfectly fine;
nothing going on in that ol’ noggin
of his beside Hawaiian shirts and a
happy-go-lucky demeanor. I envied
him. I wanted to go back to the way
things were and be ignorant of my
anxiety.
Just then, the vision of that past-self
shattered into a million pieces, shards
flying all about the second floor of the
Union. I ran up to the third floor before
he could come back. I stepped into
the CAPS office and was paired with
someone who listens to my stories, asks
questions and works to help me with
my anxiety towards relationships and
happiness.
My third and current therapist.
I wouldn’t call it fun to dive into
your past experiences and cry for a
while. I sometimes think I look like the
Kim Kardashian crying meme, which
is never a good look, but when I leave,
I feel a little more and more relieved. I
wrote this poem on my phone’s Notes
app after my first session. It hurts to
share but I trust all of you.
“when i left my first therapy session
the cold wind stung more than it
ever had before
cause my tears
that had stained the circles under my
eyes
and draped down my cheeks
made my face bare
a fresh coat of paint
ready for next week at 3:30”
I wrote this piece not only to help
Statement fill pages but also to help
myself. If I can put this inner struggle
out there and feel comfortable with
my decision to do so, I have a base to
grow from. There’s no big lesson here
for everyone to relate to and it wasn’t
easy to write but I guess I’ll end with
this: I hope happiness is just around
the corner for all of us.
Wednesday, February 21, 2018// The Statement
7B
ILLUSTRATION BY RABAB JAFRI
Let’s Talk About It: Save our schools
BY RABAB JAFRI, COLUMNIST
(continued from 6B)