On April 13th, Ralph Yarl accidentally rang the wrong doorbell and was shot twice when trying to pick his brother up from a friend’s house. On April 15th, a group of friends in New York pulled into the wrong driveway, resulting in the homeowner shooting and killing 20-year-old Kaylin Gallis. On March 27th, six people were killed in Nashville at a private Christian elementary school, three of whom were children. School shootings and murders continue to happen, raising the question of what needs to be done to put an end to the continuous shootings.
According to Dr. Margaret Johnson, an English and humanities professor at Langston Univesrity, “something drastically needs to change with the system.” Johnson, out of high school, was a police officer for five years, but “I wanted to sleep at night rather than work at night,” which led her to go into education.
“I would repeal the 2nd Amendment, personally,” Johnson said.
She expressed that the amendment and other laws, like the stand-your-ground law which gives citizens the right to use deadly force when believed to be defending themselves, are a big reason why these shootings continue to happen. The second amendment protects the right to keep and bear arms, though Johnson feels that the misinterpretation of the amendment has created a “gun fettishness,” and a “proliferation of weapons in America.” She feels what it would take is a “serious tap-down,” from both state legislatures and the federal government, specifically on assault rifles. which she believes should only be used by the military. But, she is “not convinced we have the will,” in order to take action against gun violence and that until our mentality as a country changes we may never see change.
In a Gazette poll of 100 students asking “Do you think individual people should be allowed to own assault rifles?” 83 students voted no, while 17 students voted yes. “An assault rifle is crazy,” sophomore computer science major Kristian Baccus said when asked the poll question. The poll showed that the majority of students believed that owning an assault rifle should not be allowed, and that citizens’ right to bear arms should not include the ownership of an assault rifle.
On April 25th, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee signed new gun laws, becoming one of 10 states to ban the use of assault weapons. The bills also included a 10-day waiting period on purchasing a firearm as well as giving consumers the ability to sue gun makers and sellers. Colorado Gov.
Jared Polis also signed four new gun control bills in response to a mass shooting taking place at a LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs in November 2022. Over 20 people were injured and five people died. The bills signed were similar to the ones signed in Washington, but also included raising the legal age to buy a firearm from 18 to 21. This shows an increased opportunity for states to start to taking action.
Sam Battle Jr
Staff Writer
Sam Battle Jr. Is a junior broadcast journalism and HPER major
Story ideas, opinion editorials, calendar events and advertising requests can be sent to dthom34@langston.edu. You may follow The Gazette on Instagram @lu_gazette.
The Gazette serves as the student voice of Langston University. It is produced within the Department of Communication as a teaching tool and local news source for the campus community. The views and opinions expressed within are those of the writers whose names appear with the articles and do not necessarily represent the views of Langston University.
