Dear Representative Beto O’Rourke,

February 14th is Valentine’s Day. It’s a day where we’re supposed to celebrate love and friendship. But now it’s also a day where we grieve the loss of innocent lives. The loss of 17 innocent lives at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Millions of teachers and students walked into school that day thinking it would be an average school day and so did the teachers and students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. But in the latter, three teachers and 14 students were the victims of a mass school shooting. I would like to say that this is the first time a mass shooting has happened. I would like to say it’s the first time innocent people were brutally murdered and deprived of a future. I would like to say that this is the first time innocent teachers and students have died. But it’s not. After Sandy Hook, we said “never again”. But mass shootings keep happening. Again and again. Since Sandy Hook, there have been 1,607 mass shootings, with at least 1,846 people killed and 6,459 injured, according to the 2018 Vox article. Being shot at while trying to obtain an education or while teaching students, is an actual threat. People should never have to worry about being shot at while attending school, going to a concert, or attending a party.

What are some policies that can be implemented so that people like Nikolas Cruz, Stephen Paddock, and Adam Lanza from obtaining these weapons?

First, we can implement universal background checks. The national poll conducted by Quinnipiac University found that 97 percent of Americans support universal background checks. The support also comes from gun owners and NRA members. U.S. law requires background checks for people who want to buy firearms from federally licensed dealers. However, federal law doesn’t require background checks for private transactions and many states have their own regulations regarding private sales. In Texas, anyone can buy guns from private sellers through gun shows or online. This is called the gun show loophole. This loophole must be eliminated. Anyone who purchases a gun should be subject to a background check and a psychological evaluation.

Second, Nikolas Cruz, the 19 year old who killed 17 people and injured another 14 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, was legally able to buy a AR-15 rifle. A year prior, Cruz was legally able to buy a semi-automatic rifle. An 18 year old should not be allowed to legally purchase a gun. Without proper background checks and the minimum age to possess firearms being so low, the selling of assault weapons must be severely limited. Thus, the minimum age to buy a gun should be raised. Or the selling of assault weapons should be severely limited. The purpose of such assault weapons goes beyond self-defense and if they fall into the wrong hands, they can be used for mass murder as we have seen time and time again.

Finally, we should allow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to study gun violence. There hasn’t been much research conducted on what can actually prevent deaths that result from gun violence. According to the BusinessInsider, gun control research in the United States came to an abrupt stop in 1996. One of the major arguments that gun supporters have is that there is no evidence that gun regulations and gun control would decrease gun violence. And that is true, but in 1996, the Republican-majority congress threatened to cut funding from the CDC unless it stopped funding research into firearm injuries and death. The NRA accused the CDC of promoting gun control and as a result the CDC stopped funding gun-control research. Everyone agrees that mass shootings are tragedies, but we need to know what will prevent the next one from happening and funding the CDC allows us to do that and more.

The brave survivors and students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas have been rallying people to make a change. It’s about time their voices are heard. One bullet not only shatters the person hit but the whole entire community and the nation as well. here have been too many people and communities shattered by bullets. No one should be at a concert, a party, or a classroom and be fearful of mass shooting. I want to live in a nation where the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School is the last one to ever occur. I want to live in a nation where people aren’t brutally murdered and deprived of a future because of a single bullet. And I want to live in a nation where my teachers and I don’t have to fear being shot at in a classroom. Thank you for taking the time to read this letter. I hope that you will keep my voice and the voices of all the other students in mind when you make important legislative decisions that will impact our future.

Sincerely,

Sona Shaik