After the Uvalde school massacre, ex-President Donald Trump and the gun lobby once again proposed turning schools into fortresses. But a lot has already been implemented in Texas. It was of no use.
Ted Cruz, Republican Senator from Texas, didn’t know. “Had Uvalde received a grant to improve school security, they might have made changes that could have stopped the shooter,” he said during a speech at the National Rifle Association (NRA) convention just days after the shooting Uvalde, Texas school massacre that killed 21. Then, Cruz said, the shooter “could have been killed at the only point of entry by our security guards before he hurt any of these innocent kids and teachers.” Embarrassing for the senator: Uvalde has already received such a government grant – about two years ago.
In January 2020, $69,000 from a state “program to improve physical safety in schools” went to the Uvalde School District, according to a report in local newspaper The Texas Tribune. It is unclear how many measures this money was used for. , according to which the Uvalder elementary school was at least fenced off in such a way that people who do not have to be on the school premises are not allowed in at all or only in a controlled manner (perimeter fencing). But that didn’t stop the 18-year-old gunman from breaking into the school building and shooting around.
18 more shoots since Uvalde
For years there have been laws in the USA both at the federal level and in the individual states that are intended to prevent so-called mass shootings. Hundreds of millions of dollars have been allocated to enable schools to implement security measures – including exclusive access to buildings, heavily fortified perimeter fences, metal detectors, locked and secured doors, and armed teachers and security guards. In Texas, too, there has been such a law since the Santa Fé school massacre four years ago, which left ten dead.
However, the money is often not enough to finance all safety precautions. In addition, there are probably only a few school employees who are willing to go to work with a gun. The measures, projects and laws have not worked either: this year alone, more than 200 mass shootings have taken place in the United States – including 27 school massacres. Since Uvalde there have been 18 other incidents with a total of eleven deaths. (as of May 30)
Trump and NRA continue to call for schools to be fortified
“It only happens in this country,” Democratic Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut lamented after Uvalde’s fatal shooting and pleaded with his Republican colleagues to find a way together to protect the second amendment of the US Constitution’s right to property and finally to noticeably limit the carrying of weapons. But although the debate about gun laws has become livelier in view of the very young victims of Uvalde and the desire to support stricter rules or bans, the well-known calls for those measures that are not only in Uvalde have not proven.
“What we need now is a major safety overhaul in schools across our country,” said ex-President Donald Trump – a proven gun lobby supporter. It must be about “finally fixing our schools and protecting our children”. A restriction on access to weapons, on the other hand, was not an issue even a few days after the school massacre. Congressman Lauren Boebert (Colorado) used a comparison popular with Republicans and gun lovers to point out that after the attacks of September 11th, airplanes were not banned, but rather the safety of the cockpits increased.
Preventing school massacres: Experts name options
The attitude of the Republicans and the gun lobby is not only politically controversial. Experts and academics in the USA have not only been dealing with the question of how such tragedies can be prevented since the recent school massacre in Texas. Your key insights:
- Arming teachers is not a good idea: There is practically no acceptance for this. The overwhelming majority of teachers are opposed to carrying guns in school. According to researcher Matthew Mayer of the Rutgers Graduate School of Education, the risks that the presence of guns will unintentionally cause disasters or problems outweigh the chance that they could help in an emergency.
- Raising the age limit for gun ownership: School safety researchers are calling for the age of 21 to be allowed to own guns. The reason: Experience has shown that teenagers still react too impulsively. The gunmen in the major US school shootings (Parkland, Santa Fe, Newtown, Columbine, Uvalde) were all under the age of 21.
- Increase access to weapons: According to a 2019 Secret Service report, around half of the school massacres studied involved weapons that were readily available or inadequately secured at home. Clear rules and laws are needed here. School safety researchers also advocate a ban on assault weapons and universal background checks on gun owners.
- Fight against bullying and exclusion: According to the Secret Service, most school attackers were bullied and felt left out. Therefore, schools should develop and encourage children’s conflict resolution and stress management skills, as well as empathy for their classmates. “Our first preventive strategy should be to make sure children are respected, that they feel connected and that they belong in schools,” said Odis Johnson Jr. of Johns Hopkins University. There should be anti-bullying training for staff and teachers. The Secret Service recommends trained staff to identify and support students in crisis in a timely manner before disaster strikes.
Apparently, a number of schools have already taken this advice to heart. The White House recently registered a 65 percent increase in social workers and a 17 percent increase in other educational advisors, reports National Public Radio (NPR) — funded by federal Covid-pandemic aid, not fortification laws of the schools.
Meanwhile, fears are growing that the conservative-dominated Supreme Court will extend gun-bearing rights in an upcoming decision. The US Supreme Court has to decide whether the state of New York can make the carrying of weapons in self-defense subject to very strict permits (). Observers believe the panel of judges is leaning towards a liberal interpretation. Despite the events of Uvalde.
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Source: Stern
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