After Florida, I had lost hope. Then I saw Emma Gonzalez - MUST READ

[malaise]

Last edited Mon Feb 19, 2018, 08:15 PM - Edit history (1)

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/commentisfree/2018/feb/19/after-florida-i-had-lost-hope-then-i-saw-emma-gonzalez
<snip>
It’s Presidents’ Day today. Why not celebrate with a discount on bump stocks? Their manufacturer, Slide Fire, has a special offer on. You don’t know what a bump stock is? What kind of loser are you? It’s the device by which you can make a semi-automatic rifle function as a fully automatic one. Your own machine gun! You just keep your finger on the trigger and can fire between 400 and 800 rounds a minute. The discount code, by the way, is Maga: Make America Great Again.

Bump stocks were found on the Las Vegas shooter’s guns. Of course they were. If you want to kill as many people possible in a short time, they are your friend. Useful for a school shooting.

I barely registered the latest act of terror in the US. Yes, it is terror. Alienated young men; “lone wolves”; individual terrorist cells motivated by racism, misogyny, self-loathing, complete alienation, radicalised by footage of every other mass shooting. Dress it up how you like, but this terrorism has infected US society at every level. When small children are taught what to do when the inevitable “mentally disturbed” man arrives – throw things, hide in cupboards, play dead while their murdered friends’ blood pours on to them – then terror has achieved its aims. Fear. Fear becomes woven into everyday routine in an effort to domesticate it.

But then I started watching. I saw a girl with a buzzcut, Emma González, wiping back the tears, publicly mourning her dead classmates and demanding change. I watched the footage from inside the classrooms that students had captured on their phones. I heard the screams of those about to die. I glimpsed a floral cotton dress, a flimsy desk and realised that these children are taking control of the narrative now.

There will be school strikes. There is resistance. These young people will not sit in classrooms any more waiting for their turn to come. They are not going to be another statistic. “We are going to be the kids you read about in textbooks,” said a weeping González. Plans have been announced for a March for Our Lives on 24 March.

[MontanaMama]

1. I hope these kids can keep up the pressure.

It will be a long road. Time for an accounting! These children will not forget.

[Gothmog]

2. These young students are amazing

Link to tweet

[Mc Mike]

3. Rec, thanks mal. nt

[smirkymonkey]

4. Bravo!

[zentrum]

5. These are amazing kids.n/t

[TomSlick]

6. I am a cynical, skeptical old bastard. I cried when I heard Emma's speech.

I am trying not to allow myself to be optimistic that this time will be different but these kids are amazing.

[Tatiana]

7. These kids are going to do it.

They were exactly what we needed. They are unafraid. They are poised and ready to take on the NRA, the traitorous Republicans, and anyone else who would so casually exchange human lives for profit.

I hope the adults provide the necessary support to sustain this movement for change.