Another day, another shooting. Families mourning the deaths of loved ones. When will it end? Not until politicians gather the guts to unite against America’s powerful gun lobby.
Last week’s Seattle shooting – which killed three and injured four, including a toddler – shook me more than other shootings with much higher deaths.
It happened at the Bite of Seattle, an annual food festival at the Space Needle, a popular tourist site.
I lived in Seattle during the early 2000s. My family and I went to the Bite of Seattle every summer. It is a celebration of food and fun. Restaurants have stalls serving all kinds of cuisine. We sampled snacks, watched performances, and listened to bands play in the grassy areas.
Imagine my horror when I read last week’s shooting was a gunfight among three teenagers. One died in the shootout, along with two people who were just there to enjoy the festival.
I treasure my memories of the Bite of Seattle. How is a shooting there possible? But it is. They happen everywhere: at schools, bars, parties. America has more civilian-owned guns than its 350 million population.
There were 425 shootings last year, which killed 420 and injured 1,900. The deadliest mass shooting happened in Las Vegas in 2017. A gunman fired multiple rounds with assorted weapons from the 32nd floor of his hotel room.
He randomly shot at about 22,000 people at an outdoor music festival, killing 59 and injuring hundreds. A SWAT team found the 64-year-old shooter dead in his room.
The United States Constitution’s Second Amendment, ratified in 1791, protects the right to bear arms.
The minimum age under federal law to buy handguns physically or online from licensed dealers is 21, and 18 for long guns such as rifles. Many states have stopped sales to people under 21, but some unlicensed dealers still do.
America’s powerful gun lobby, the National Rifle Association, which US President Donald Trump’s Republican Party supports, is against tougher background checks for weapons buyers.
Trump supported gun rights during his election campaigns to win the NRA’s backing. The NRA receives huge donations and membership fees from gun supporters. It uses this during elections to lobby for and fund politicians who support gun rights.
The Democratic Party favors tougher gun laws, but it faces stiff opposition from Republicans. Will the mass shootings ever end? As an American, I hope so. But it will not until enough Americans say enough is enough.
Michael Chugani is a longtime journalist who has worked in Hong Kong, the US, and London
