Following the tragic event of the Stoneman Douglas High School it has been highlighted across the world that school shootings have become a very serious problem in the USA. It is very clear that action must be taken in order to prevent further massacres in the future.
However, much of the nation’s opinions are divided on what type of action should be taken by the US government. The opinion of many citizens is that all guns should be banned from the public in America to prevent any further shootings. President
Trump recently released his rather controversial opinion on the matter which was that he thinks all American teachers should have the right to carry hand guns and be trained in the use of armed weapons in self-defence.
In Scotland there has only been one school shooting, the Dunblane shooting. Immediately after the shooting the Scottish government took action by banning all guns in the country and so far there has been none since. Many people would hope that this action would lead by example across the globe.
The issue in America is that guns are so easily acquired by all ages of people. An experiment was conducted by a 14 year old boy which showed that every shop showed disgust when the boy tried to purchase cigarettes and alcohol although when the boy tried to purchase an automatic firearm he was able to and left the shop within 15 minutes with a deadly weapon. This emphasises the fact that shootings could happen anywhere and could be carried out by anyone. Many people also argue that all guns should be banned from public purchase across the country however this could be classed as almost impossible now as there are already so much guns in circulation that it would be a near impossible task to carry out.
The US government are doing a lot to raise awareness about school shootings. Many TV adverts have been showcased teaching people how to check for signs of unusual behaviour in people which could result in future shootings. Teachers and students are now conducting frequent drills to protect themselves in the event of a shooting. Teachers are also attending different self-defence courses on protecting themselves and pupils in the event of shootings. Many schools across the USA are now being fitted with buttons underneath teachers desks which when pressed directly calls their local police department and police are dispatched to the school immediately. The shocking truth about America is that there have been a mind-boggling 31 school shootings since 2000 and something needs to change in order to stop this from happening.
