Government, Gun Violence, Public Health

The massacre in Orlando

June 17, 2016

The terrible tragedy at a nightclub in Orlando, Fla., made me feel upset, angry, sad and horrified. I’ve written and spoken many times about how important it is, at this time, in this country, to accept people for who they are and whom they love. I’ve also commented many times over the past decade that civilians should not have access to the kinds of weapons used in Orlando.

Someone said to me Tuesday night, “Maybe this will be a wake-up call for gun control.”

I wish that could be the case, but I don’t think it will be. I don’t believe that U.S. legislators have the courage to take on gun control. (See “In the Shadow of a Gunman” and “America’s Gun Culture, By the Numbers,” in the current issue of the N.C. Triangle-area Indy Week, for a sobering examination of this topic.) The result, tragically, is that we will cover this ground again and again – and that should not happen in a civilized country.
Barbara

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The views expressed in this blog are Barbara Rimer’s alone and do not represent the views and policies of The University of North Carolina or the Gillings School.