Citation

Rogers M, Lara Ovares EA, Ogunleye OO, Twyman T, Akkus C, Patel K, Fadlalla M. Am. J. Public Health 2018; 108(7): 862-863.

Affiliation

Melanie Rogers is with the University of New England, Biddeford, ME. Ericka A. Lara Ovares is with the University of Minnesota School of Public Health, Minneapolis. Olushola Olaitan Ogunleye is with the Department of Public and Community Health, Liberty University, Lynchburg, VA. Tara Twyman is with Saint Louis University, St Louis, MO. Cem Akkus is with the University of Memphis, Memphis, TN. Kalpita Patel is an alumna of Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA. Marwa Fadlalla is with George Washington University, Washington, DC.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2018, American Public Health Association)

DOI

10.2105/AJPH.2018.304477

PMID

29874491

Abstract

The year 2018 has seen 18 instances of gun-related injuries and fatalities at American schools in fewer than 100 days.1 We thought the outrage following the murder of 20 children in the Sandy Hook Elementary School was enough to force a national dialogue on gun violence 6 years ago, but it was not. Nevertheless, 2018 has been different. This year, the students affected by the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida, have started a national student-led campaign against gun violence, culminating in the March for Our Lives movement. As graduate public health students who have the honor of serving in the 2018 AJPH Student Think Tank, we wish to use our platform to uplift and join the voices of the brave high-school students who have been thrust into the national spotlight to call for better solutions to gun violence in schools.

In the wake of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, political discourse has shifted to the proposition of arming school teachers with guns as a means of reducing the mortality rate of school-related shootings. We wonder if policymakers have considered the intricacies of implementing a plan to arm teachers. Funding of any program is imperative—quality firearms are expensive, and we question how this would be paid for when schools already struggle with funding for basic educational resources. Teachers cannot be asked to purchase a firearm in addition to pencils and paper. When would teachers undergo firearms qualification training, and who would be responsible for training them? Unless educators undergo training comparable to law enforcement officers, their ability to stop or prevent a mass shooting is questionable. Furthermore, educators may not wish to work in such conditions—multiple professors resigned from the University of Texas after firearms were permitted on campus.2 It is unethical to place this burden on those who do not wish to participate in such a program that could result in inflicting injury or death upon other people.

Firearms in a classroom setting present enormous risk to life, limb, and mental well-being. Improper firearm storage, a common problem for American gun owners ...

Language: en