Roughly twenty years ago, parents would never have imagined the horrors that happen in their children’s classrooms. All across the country, kids are dying, and no one bats an eye. In recent years, the number of school shootings and fatalities have drastically increased, with the leading year being 2024, with 229 shootings in academic-related locations. This includes elementary schools, middle schools, high schools, college campuses, and specialized learning centers. Unfortunately, 2025 has already had 109 gun-related incidents, and may fall close behind.
In 2025 alone, there have already been 79 injuries and 25 fatalities. In total, since the year 2008, the United States has experienced 757 school shootings. That’s right, almost 800 schools have been affected by this. As well as the hundreds of thousands of people whose lives are forever changed. Even if people aren’t the ones who are directly affected, their friends, family, neighbors, and teachers are. Entire communities’ lives are shattered by the act of one senseless person.
After yet again another shooting, people all over the nation ask themselves the same question, “Why?” No one will truly know the answer. Of course, we can make assumptions. Maybe anger, desperation, or revenge? The only thing that we do know for sure is that almost all school intruders have a history of being bullied, have in the past/currently are experiencing childhood abuse and trauma, or have a lack of a strong support system. Isolation and depression can lead some individuals to do things that others would never think of.
That leads us to another question: “are unstable people getting the help they need and deserve?” No one deserves to feel like they are so misunderstood that the only option they have is to hurt others, and then, eventually, hurt themselves. For someone to be able to walk into a school setting and attempt to hurt people, let alone children, they have to be extremely unwell. Many of these incidents could have been prevented if only the person had gotten the proper help they needed. I am in no way defending or condoning this behavior, as it is extremely detrimental to our society. I am simply proposing a question, one that needs to be answered.
In times of chaos and confusion, it’s human nature for people to find someone to look up to, to console them, to tell them it will all be okay. This role has typically been filled by our government, but those times are long in the past. A study done in August of 2025 shows that only 33% of people trust in the American government to do what’s right. As you can see, this is not a very high number and is only about ⅓ of the population.
Gun violence is preventable. It rarely even occurred in large settings a mere 30 years ago. The people in charge must take a stronger stance on gun control. The fact of the matter is, if mentally unstable people couldn’t get a hold of guns so easily, there would not be nearly as many shootings.
But what about the Second Amendment? Countless people have made this argument, and it’s true; it is a valid point. The problem with our Second Amendment is that it’s outdated. Of course, we will never be able to completely abolish the Second Amendment, because it is one of our rights, but there should be more precautions put in place.
So far, President Trump has done absolutely nothing to protect American children. In fact, he’s quite literally done the opposite. He has claimed to be against gun violence, but actions speak louder than words. He has undermined the ATF’s (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives) ability to protect and enforce gun laws. His administration abruptly removed over $800 million worth of grants set aside for gun prevention.
Everyone in America has heard about the devastating and irreversible damage done at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Many people are still affected by this disaster. In May of 2025, Trump and his team removed a memorial in the ATF building that was set aside for gun violence victims. This included police officers killed on duty, the teachers and children of Sandy Hook, and so many more. We may ask ourselves, “Why would he do this?” and that’s really a great question. It’s a memorial for people as young as six years old who were senselessly killed for absolutely no reason at all.
Clearly, Trump is trying to erase the past. Trying to erase America’s terrible history surrounding firearms. Even though he and his administration like to pretend like it’s not happening, it’s going to be hard to erase all the innocent lives that have been lost. America needs to take a stronger stance on gun control if we want our youth to survive another day. Those who are given the opportunity should be the ones helping us, not hurting us.
