Over the last six years, America has seen its share of school shootings. One notably devastating shooting was the Sandy Hook, Connecticut school shooting, where 20 young children and six adult staff members were fatally shot. The shooting is said to be the deadliest mass school shooting in American history.
After every one of these shootings, we are reminded of the bravery exhibited by teachers and staff who put their lives on the line to save or rescue their students. Teachers who try to tackle the shooters or teachers who put their bodies between their students and flying bullets.
Despite the bravery shown by these teachers, we are told: “Teachers are too busy to carry a firearm.” “They don’t have the mental capacity to use a firearm.” “Some teachers are sleeping with students, they aren’t trustworthy.” “Armed guards are not the answer.” Every excuse to avoid allowing teachers or staff to acquire training and carry a firearm on school grounds for the defense of self and others.
We are told by politicians and redshirt activist, arming teachers is not the answer. Furthermore, we are also told that our schools aren’t prisons and we shouldn’t have armed guards or police in schools.
Fifteen survivors of the Stoneman Douglas School shooting filed suit against Broward officials for ‘conscious-shocking conduct.’ The 15 are seeking compensatory damages from Broward County, school resource officer Scot Peterson, Sheriff Scott Israel, and 6 others, for taking cover outside and not entering and confronting the shooter. However, U.S. District Judge Beth Bloom dismissed the case on the grounds that the cops on the scene had no duty to protect the children in the school.
Police officers have no constitutional duty to protect you or your children, yet redshirt advocate for your disarmament.
A commission was formed to investigate the Stoneman Douglas School shooting. They found at the conclusion of their investigation that between the shooters reload times there was ample time for an armed staff member to return fire and possibly hit and kill the shooter.
Additionally, Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri, chairman of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Commission said “We know from the history of these things that the majority are stopped by school personnel,” Gualtieri said, pointing to shootings where the gunman was tackled or disarmed by a teacher or campus employee. “People need to keep an open mind to it as the reality is that if someone else in that school had a gun it could have saved kids’ lives.” Sheriff Bob Gualtieri has also recommended to the Safety Commission, that state law be changed so teachers who undergo background checks and extensive training will be allowed to have guns on campus as a last line of defense.
Where the redshirts are concerned, what are the alternatives? Arm our teachers? Place gun-free signs outside the schools and hope it’s obeyed, leave our schools disarmed and at the mercy of madmen who overlook the gun free signs? That is not good enough.
Our school safety is being undermined by people with deep pockets. The redshirts are backed by millionaires whose idea of safety is to leave our children vulnerable to attacks by madmen.
The same teachers, we are told can’t be trusted with firearms, are the same teachers, we entrust to educate and raise our kids in our absence every semester.
Politicians and school board members are taking policy recommendations from people who have absolutely no idea about firearm safety or school safety.
These redshirts are traveling around the country advocating for policies and laws that will put our teachers and children’s lives in danger and possibly get them killed.
Hope and denial are not strategies for Staying Alive.
Schools that do care about their children’s safety are enacting a program called Faster. The Faster program was created by Law enforcement and concerned parents who put child safety above politics. Faster gives educators and first responders education in practical violence response training.
Is your school a gun free zone? Find out how your school can also enact the Faster program. Click here.
(The featured collage image used in this article was gathered using the search term teacher on @MomsDemand Twitter feed)
