When I read the first news story about the shooting in Tuscon, my stomach was pulled into a knot. The idea that someone was literally out there shooting elected officials made me scared, sad and angry. When I read that it was Gabby Giffords, my fear and anger were suddenly swept under the rug by a horrible wave of sadness, and this terrible feeling of…..overwhelming emotion.
Gabby, as you may have heard by now, is a bright engaging woman who was well liked and respected by many in the House, and who was considered a moderate Democrat. She is also a graduate of Scripps College, a small women’s college in Southern California and my own alma mater. She is a woman whose career I have been following for years through our college magazine and through my work with the alumnae office.
Our school graduates an average of 200 women a year. This is not a large alumnae association.
And on Saturday, one of us was shot.
In reading comments posted after one of the articles about the shooting, I noticed several people particularly decrying the death of Christina Taylor Green, a nine year old girl who died from her injuries. “She didn’t do anything” the commentators kept saying “She was innocent”.
While I am beyond horrified at the killing of a nine year old girl – BEYOND HORRIFIED – I am equally as horrified at the people who seem to think that she was the only innocent person who was injured or killed that day.
ALL of the people in the parking lot on Saturday were innocent. NONE of them had “done anything”. Judge John Roll, Dorthy Murray, Dorwin Stoddard, Phyllis Scheck and Gabe Zimmerman did nothing to incite being murdered. And neither did Gabby.
How far out of whack have we become as a nation to think that because someone is serving in Congress or is a District Judge, their life expectancy is naturally shorter? How is is that on Monday morning, the first words I heard on the radio were about how more members of Congress were considering carrying firearms? Is violence now our solution to all disagreements?
On Saturday, a member of Congress was shot. On Saturday, one of my fellow alumnae was shot. On Saturday, Gabby was shot.
Thank you for articulating some of the feelings we are all experiencing from Saturday’s shooting. In 2010 there were 90 shootings just down the road from us in the city of Providence, 11 of which were fatal. You’re right, Christana, inaction is no longer an option.
The whole incident is shocking to me. And even more shocking is the notion that this country needs to be more armed. Shame on those who feel it is necessary to use violence to combat violence. It won’t work, it never does.