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School shootings fail to spark gun law change
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BY DANIELLE JOHNSON
n the two years since the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida, there has been alarmingly few nation-wide laws passed regarding gun control. In the years prior to the Parkland shooting, the laws in Florida were pretty lackluster, and the state did not have nearly enough to keep its people safe. Florida did not have a requirement for an owner license, no state permit required for gun purchase and no specific assault weapon laws. Since the horrific shooting, there have been multiple laws passed, mostly at the state level and still very few nationally. One law passed in Florida in the wake of the shooting was named the “Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act.” This law raised the age of
purchasing guns from 18 to 21, banned people “mentally defective” from buying a gun and banned bump stocks. This law is something the state of Florida should have had in place far before this tragedy occurred. Banning things like bump stocks, which make guns much more deadly, and having the age to purchase a gun be 21 seem like very obvious things to have in place. Why should someone not be able to drink alcohol, but able to own a gun? Multiple other states such as New York, Vermont, California and Louisiana have also passed gun control legislation in response to the shooting. It really frustrates me that something so awful has to happen to have anyone turn an eye and make a change. Lawmakers should be protecting the public's safety so things like this don't happen at all, not just in response to when tragedies do occur. Trump has repeatedly voiced his
support for passing “sensible” gun laws, yet nothing has been passed. The president should take action to get the laws he supposedly supports passed. Something positive that came out of something so awful has been the March For Our Lives movement. This movement has been one of the most inspiring and impactful movements teenagers have ever started. This movement was started by a small group of survivors from the shooting that has now become a nationwide movement supported by celebrities, politicians and students from all over the world. The Parkland shooting has been one of the biggest tragedies the United States has ever seen, and even with the multiple state laws passed since the shooting two years ago, there has been an extreme lack of national gun control. That needs to be changed. FEBRUARY 2020 | theeyrie.org