Tuesday night, my kid begged me to take the SEPTA bus home–she finds it fun. We got off blocks from Broad & Snyder–about 30 minutes before someone was murdered on a different bus blocks away.1 The day prior, a teenager was killed while waiting at a bus stop blocks from his school2; and on Wednesday, eight teenagers were wounded in a mass shooting while doing the same.3
Violence and vigilance have sadly become part of the daily commute. Instead of listening to my daughter's stories about playing with friends (they are adorable), I'm keeping one eye on my surroundings and an arm ready to sweep her into a protective embrace if gunfire rings out. It's exhausting. And none of us should have to live like this.
This isn't about a lack of available solutions. States with strong gun safety laws have significantly less gun violence. That's a fact.4 There's dozens of gun safety bills languishing in Harrisburg right now, waiting to get sent to Governor Shapiro's desk and signed into law. We know they would save lives.
