Thousand Oaks Shooting
CONTENT WARNING: mentions of gun violence, suicide
On November 7, 2018, another shooting splashed across national newspaper headlines. Some survivors of the Thousand Oaks shooting were also targeted in the 2017 Las Vegas shooting. We know that there is a serious issue when some are victims of multiple shootings.
Gun violence has become a political issue rather than a public safety issue, but when so many people are dying every day because of gun violence, why isn’t there more being done? Shouldn’t people, regardless of their political opinion, drop everything to make sure that their loved ones aren’t harmed by gun violence?
People say that the only person who can stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun. There was an armed officer in the Thousand Oaks shooting who died in the hospital after exchanging fire with the shooter. His name was Sergeant Ron Helus and he was planning on retiring next year after working in the sheriff's office for twenty-nine years. He was trained. He was a professional, but the shooter’s Glock had an extended magazine, so he was able to fire more rounds without having to worry about reloading.
Two of the victims were military veterans about to be honored for fighting for our country. Daniel Manrique served in the Marines in Afghanistan and after serving for six years got a regional manager position at Team Red, White, and Blue, a charity for rehabilitating veterans through physical activity, social activity, and community service. The other veteran, who was formally part of the Navy, had survived the Las Vegas shooting, only to be killed a year later at the Borderline Bar & Grill in Thousand Oaks, California. His name was Telemachus Orfanos. According to the Huffington Post, after his murder, his mother responded by saying, “He didn’t come home last night, and I don’t want prayers. I don’t want thoughts. I want gun control, and I hope to God nobody sends me anymore prayers. I want gun control.”
Because there are so many shootings, we label them as statistics, without truly being conscious that all the victims had lives that were cut short. Their names were Justin Meek (23), Alania Housley (18), Cody Coffman (22), Blake Dingman (21), Kristina Morisette (20), Jake Dunham (21), Mark Meza Jr. (20), Noel Sparks (21), Sean Adler, Telemachus Orfanos, and Daniel Manrique. Eight of the thirteen victims were under twenty-four.
During the shooting, according to Buzzfeed and ABC News, the shooter posted on Instagram, “‘I hope people call me insane (two smiley face emojis) would that just be a big ball of irony? Yeah... I'm insane, but the only thing you people do after these shootings is 'hopes and prayers'...or 'keep you in my thoughts'...Every time...and wonder why these keep happening... --(two smiley face emojis).” Guns are rooted in our culture as Americans, and unlike other first-world countries, our nation has weaker background checks. Many shooters know that gun violence is an important topic right now, and they want attention and believe that because of America’s polarity on this issue, nothing will be done to stop them.
The shooter, a former veteran, had access to a legal firearm, while his mental instability and possible PTSD was on the radar of neighbors and even law enforcement, according to NBC Los Angeles. While mental illness can increase the risk that someone will commit violence or suicide, that isn’t the only issue that needs to be addressed when it comes to gun violence. As Vox News said, “America does not have a monopoly on mental health issues, bigots, or extremists. What is unique about the US is that it makes it so easy for people with these issues to obtain a gun.”
We ask ourselves every day why there is so much violence in the United States because we can’t deal with the responsibility every American holds to create physical change to prevent senseless violence. It’s time to step up and make gun violence a bipartisan conversation.
by EMILY WEINBERG