Oxford High School Shooting
Note: The majority of the conversation surrounding this issue is taking place on the left.
What else is each side focusing on?
- School shootings have become commonplace.
- Politicians don’t implement necessary legislation to prevent them going forward.
- Guns don’t kill people, people do.
- COVID restrictions also have tragic consequences that we shouldn’t ignore.
The Narrative
The Sandy Hook shooting should have been enough of a tragedy to motivate us to implement better gun regulation, but instead we’ve seen multiple school shootings following that tragic event.
We lack a sense of security because of the threat of our children being killed at school.
Even when Democrats control both the presidency and Congress, they fail to implement stricter gun laws.
School shootings are tragic events, but the left’s proposals to curtail essential civil liberties would do nothing to prevent them.
The problem isn’t guns themselves, it’s that youth resort to violence to work out their differences. We should focus our attention on helping people who experience mental health issues who commit these types of horrendous acts.
How could a reasonable person come to think this?
- The government’s primary obligation is to ensure the safety of all its citizens.
- The right to own a gun should not supersede the right to safety for children in our schools.
- The right to own a gun is central to our freedom and gun restrictions unfairly criminalizes law abiding citizens.
- Whenever possible, the government should refrain from meddling in day to day life.
What else is the left focusing on?
- School shootings have become commonplace.
- Politicians don’t implement necessary legislation to prevent them going forward.
The narrative: The Sandy Hook shooting should have been enough of a tragedy to motivate us to implement better gun regulation, but instead we’ve seen multiple school shootings following that tragic event.
We lack a sense of security because of the threat of our children being killed at school.
Even when Democrats control both the presidency and Congress, they fail to implement stricter gun laws.
How could a reasonable person come to believe that?
- The government’s primary obligation is to ensure the safety of all its citizens.
- The right to own a gun should not supersede the right to safety for children in our schools.
What else is the right focusing on?
- Guns don’t kill people, people do.
- COVID restrictions also have tragic consequences that we shouldn’t ignore.
The narrative: School shootings are tragic events, but the left’s proposals to curtail essential civil liberties would do nothing to prevent them.
The problem isn’t guns themselves, it’s that youth resort to violence to work out their differences. We should focus our attention on helping people who experience mental health issues who commit these types of horrendous acts.
How could a reasonable person come to believe that?
- The right to own a gun is central to our freedom and gun restrictions unfairly criminalizes law abiding citizens.
- Whenever possible, the government should refrain from meddling in day to day life.
We all agree the death of children at school is a horrendous event. Divisions in discussions surrounding school shootings arise out of broader debates about gun legislation.
People who are in favor of regulating gun ownership see the occurrence of school shootings as proof that stricter legislation is needed.
People who are against regulating gun ownership see school shootings as proof of other societal issues, such as rising levels of violent crime and/or mental illness.
When we bring our pre-existing values on gun ownership into the discussion surrounding school shootings, it’s harder for us to understand each other because we approach the conversation from diametrically opposing positions.
What do you think? Do you agree with one side, or do you fall somewhere in between? Give us feedback on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook, or by emailing info@narrativesproject.com.