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Valentine’s Day is separated by gender, creating unequal expectations.

BY SELA KINCAID VIDEO AND CONTENT EDITOR

Everyone spends money. Money on dates, food, clothes and gifts for women and men wanting to receive and give to their other half. Sharing roles in planning an event, especially Valentine’s Day, is important. Women need to take charge and treat their significant other, while still being treated by their other half.

February is seen as a month of romance, filled with chocolates and flowers. Valentine’s Day is the peak of this month of romance, spreading love to all the couples in the United States. St. Valentine is seen as the inspiration for this holiday. The story goes that in Rome young men were banned from getting married, with the idea that single men were better soldiers. St. Valentine, a priest, believed this was wrong; he continued to perform marriages in secret, later having to pay for this with his life, according to History.com.

Men are traditionally seen as the planners and gift-givers of Valentine’s Day. In a survey taken by Bankrate, men planned to spend around $339, where women planned to only spend $64. It is clear that men are expected to bring in the big bucks for Valentine’s Day. But women simply spend just a bit below the average date, usually costing $102, according to USA Today.

There needs to be a new norm with a lower and more equal spending limit. Women are very capable of taking on this task. Take charge and treat your significant other. Why not show love equally through a night together. Take Valentine’s Day as an opportunity to have a special night, meaning a lot to both of you, not just one-sided happiness and the other broke from overpaying.

Overspending does not necessarily make for a great Valentine’s Day. To enjoy relationships there shouldn’t be a focus on money, but instead the time together. Valentine’s Day is based on love, or affection for another human being. This is not something bought, but instead should be something shared. Women and men can spend less and create a more meaningful event by doing less storebought experiences.

To take charge and still have the money afterward, you might opt for the less expensive route. This could be something like going ice skating and cooking dinner at home or setting up a game night and having other couples come over and play. Maybe even go completely homemade and paint pictures together following a Bob Ross tutorial. Valentine’s Day doesn’t have to be extremely romantic as you can give or get gifts in many different ways. What matters the most is time together and equal participation.

This Valentines Day, take charge and stand for what you want. Whether it is to buy dinner for your significant other, cook a meal together, gift homemade presents or just spending time together. Women and men can have equal involvement in all of these ideas.

Allowing one side to pay and create this scene is unfair and only allows one side to express effort in the relationship. If women step up to take the responsibility of demonstrating romance and care for their significant other, Valentine’s Day would be more meaningful.

Go back to the roots of what Valentine’s Day is for the love and connection between two people to create an equally shared holiday that brings joy and happiness to both.

Go Online to Le Journal Live to take a “Who am I on Valentine’s Day” Quiz

Share the Love

“I definitely think that in

a relationship you should give something to them and hopefully they give something to you.” Junior Brynna Dow

“You have to put in effort to get out effort. It’s a two way street.” Sophomore Tess Tappan

“I feel like in a

relationship, its you love that person the same amount, so you give them stuff and go to dinner and just spend time together.” Freshman Katherine Porch

Do you want to be treated or treat:

41.7% want to be treated 27.1% want to treat 31.3% treat themselves

Do you want to have equal participation in Valentine’s Day:

90.6% yes 9.4% no

VIOLENCE IN KANSAS CITY 39.0997° N, 94.5786° W

Kansas City has filed for a lawsuit against gun trafficking ring members in order to decrease violence within the city.

Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas filed a public nuisance lawsuit against a Nevada gun manufacturer and firearm dealers Jan. 7.

Kansas City is the first city in more than 10 years to file a lawsuit against the gun industry and involved parties, according to Lucas. During a video press conference, Lucas announced that the city is bringing action against multiple defendants. Lucas said that the suit ‘relates to the fact that illegal gun trafficking has created a public nuisance,’ and is the cause of increasing deaths within the metro.

In 2019, there were approximately 148 homicides in the Kansas City jurisdiction, 86 of which were cleared and solved, according to the Kansas City police department. This is an escalation from 135 homicides in 2018, and 128 in 2016. This number does not include other violent crimes, such as armed robbery, rape or assault.

Then on Jan. 19, just hours after a Chief ’s AFC Championship victory, two people were killed and 15 injured at a nightclub shooting, according to KMBC. “When I heard about the shooting, it made me nervous because I have a connection to the man who owns the club,” senior Marigrace Bishop said. “It made me angry that people think it’s okay to react in that kind of way, to take another’s life for the benefit of their own.” The lawsuit has been filed against a gun trafficking ring led by accused former Kansas City Fire Department Captain James Samuels, Nevada gun manufacturer Jimenez Arms and other smaller arms dealers. “Taking any force of action to decrease the homicide rate would benefit the city. It goes to show how powerful the gun industry is and how money can take control of certain situations,” senior Phoebe Mullen said. “I think what Mayor Lucas is doing is a great thing for the city, but unfortunately people are going to get their hands on guns, regardless of laws and regulations.” Kansas City has requested that, under court order, Jimenez Arms and other involved parties must recover trafficked items, comply with firearm laws, participate in a five-year monitoring program with integrity testing and undergo training, according to the Kansas City website.

Many of the contributors involved in the trafficking ring are not Kansas City residents, according to Lucas. He said that there are ‘private actors that each day create new threats for the citizens of Kansas City.’

Everytown Law, a counsel branched off of Everytown For Gun Safety, is partnering with the city on the suit. Everytown works to provide an understanding of gun violence and how to prevent it, according to their website.

The city is asking for reimbursement for dealing with violent crimes and an order for defendants to acquire previously trafficked firearms, according to Everytown Law.

Both Mayor Lucas and Everytown Law were contacted but declined to comment. STORY BY EMMA HUTCHIN PHOTO EDITOR INFOGRAPHICS BY MALEAH DOWNTON WEB EDITOR-IN-CHIEF AND EMMA HUTCHIN PHOTO EDITOR