Within the first ten days of school, all the schools in my county must have their first lockdown drill. There are other drills, of course. But the lockdown drill is often the one that brings a huge cloud over our heads. I spend the first few days of school asking how my child’s day was and quizzing them on what they need to do when the school is on lockdown.
It’s not pleasant. And it shouldn’t be necessary. But sadly it is.
According to Education Week, so far in 2023, we’ve had 27 school shootings with injuries or deaths. And if you’re thinking, “Uh, that’s not that many,” then you’ve become part of the problem.
Our nation is becoming desensitized to shootings. It doesn’t faze us as it used to. It doesn’t bring outrage like it should. And it doesn’t bring out the empathy and compassion a civilized society should have.
That is the problem with our country. We value individual wellbeing. We disregard the community’s wellbeing. It is not so different from the Conservatives’ selfish belief that they worked hard to get where they are and therefore any individual can do the same.
I call bullsh*t.
Any child’s life is just as important as my child’s life. Any school in the country is just as important as my school down the street. Each family is just as important as mine.
As a country, we need to reevaluate what’s important when it comes to school shootings and shootings in general. Don’t we already know what is most important?
As a progressive mom, I do.
A progressive mom’s musings,
Edil Mari De Los Reyes
