In Texas, May is a special time for gun violence survivors. Within its markers are the anniversaries of two major school shootings – the Santa Fe High School shooting on May 18th and the Uvalde Robb Elementary School shooting on May 24th.
It is a hard time for many, none more so than the families who lost their children on these morbid anniversaries. Yet still many survivors, including some of these families, turn their grief into action. In the face of their strength and perseverance despite overwhelming loss, the least the rest of us can do is stand with them and call for action. In partnership with several organizations and advocates, Texas Impact and many of our member congregations did so on May 18th. In Dallas and Austin two special Vidas Robadas displays went up calling for change.
Several Dallas congregations gathered at City Hall for a Rally for Gun Violence Prevention and NRA Accountability. Texas Impact joined Moms Demand Action and Giffords Gun Owners for Safety to organize the rally and call on civic leaders to push for gun violence prevention measures. The rally was held across the street from the NRA Annual Meeting to protest irresponsible gun ownership and advocate for positive solutions. Over 400 t-shirt memorials of Dallas County victims of gun violence were displayed. They set the backdrop for speeches by local advocates, gun violence interrupters, and survivors like Mireya Rodriguez who spoke about surviving the Allen Mall shooting.
At the rally advocates highlighted the rising number of youth deaths by gun, naming or in some instances referencing the 47 Texas kids who have died from gun violence this year. The event was widely covered by local, national, and religious media:
On the same day, Austin Central Presbyterian Church hosted the concert “STOP SHOOTING” by the choral group Un/heard. The event had over 100 Austinites in attendance and spoke about the murder of LGBTQ+ individuals. Seven members of the LGBTQ+ community had special t-shirt memorials made for them.
While these events speak to the strength and resiliency of our communities, they are also a somber reminder that gun violence is affecting everyone. While some communities are facing disproportionate amounts of gun violence, no one community is exempt from its effects. Mass shootings threaten to make any church, school, or town its next target, and the extreme proliferation of firearms makes any political disagreement easily turn deadly. America is struggling with growing violence and polarization. Violent political rhetoric has grown exponentially in the past few years and has come to fruition in public spaces such as in Charlottesville or the El Paso Walmart shooting.
The times certainly feel scary. But if the families from Uvalde can show up almost every week to the Texas legislature to advocate and work towards preventing the next tragedy, then the rest of us have no excuse. Gun violence is a hard issue, but that is all the more reason why we must work on it. The cost of inaction is too high.