Like many, I am deeply saddened and disturbed by the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. My wish now, in the aftermath of the verdict, is that we as a country use this as an opportunity to build bridges, not barriers.
Tonight, I am thinking of the friends I have whose family and friends live in Moore, Oklahoma. A tornado ripped through and destroyed two elementary schools, a hospital, and unnamed other buildings earlier today. The latest numbers from MSNBC say that seven elementary school students are among the dead, and another 30 are unaccounted for.
My thoughts today are with the victims of the Boston Marathon tragedy, their families, and friends. My family and I live outside of Boston, and we consider the city almost as much our home as we do the suburb where our house stands. In college, I proudly joined the Wellesley College “Scream Tunnel” to cheer on the runners. Two days ago, my spouse and I spent the afternoon walking around the city, noting the crowd-control barricades already in place for the race in Copley Square.
Yesterday, I posted my column about the December 14th school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. Today, I’m honored to bring you a guest post from my own mother, who had her own thoughts and offered to share them here. Some of our thoughts (not surprisingly) overlap, but she adds her own perspective as a mental health professional.
Thanks, Mom!
(I wrote this for my newspaper column the day of the school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. I hope 2013 is the year we as a country begin to take serious steps to ensure such tragedies never happen again.)
This was going to be a very different column. Then 20 children died in Connecticut.
Gun control is only one part of what our country must do to reduce the chances of another school shooting like the one December 14 in Newtown, Connecticut—but it is a vital one. There are a number of petitions out now to let our elected officials know our thoughts on the matter. I’m highlighting a petition and a pledge from Moms Rising because they’re good folks who do a lot across the board to help those of us who have the honor of being called moms.
Like many people, I am still going through periods of fear and sadness as I think of the school shooting last Friday in Newtown, Connecticut. There is no lack of commentary on the tragedy, but here are a few that I found rise above the rest.
I am stunned and horrified by the school shooting in at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut today, that left 27 dead, including 18 children. I grew up in Connecticut. My own son is in elementary school one state over. Not that the nearness should matter—this is a tragedy for our whole country. My thoughts are with the families and community in Newtown, and I can find no more words right now. Give your kids extra hugs today. I know I will with mine.
I’ve posted a similar version of this for a few years now, but it seems appropriate to do so again.
In honor of all the victims of the tragedy of September 11 and its aftermath, their families, and their friends.
I was sickened by the news of the shooting this past weekend at a Sikh temple, or gurdwara, near Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Few things scare me more than random shootings that occur in what are supposed to be places of safety, such as schools and houses of worship. There is little that can help us make sense of what are senseless acts—but one article that has helped me think about how to move forward is “Today, we are all American Sikhs” by Valarie Kaur at CNN.
