I’ve
wanted to say something for a while. I guess I just couldn’t find the words.
So
if for some reason you don’t know yet, the largest mass shooting in the history
of the United States took place last weekend – 49 people were killed at a gay
bar, and many others injred. Just a couple days before, a singer, Christina
Grimme was gunned down while she was meeting fans after a concert. Both events
took place in Orlando, Florida.
Please
give this a listen - it broke my heart.
I
don’t even know what to say. This whole situation made me feel small. I am only 17, and I
live on the other end of the world. I am so detached from this situation, and
yet I can’t deny that when I heard the news, I cried. Because I’m human. And
that’s what humans do. They bend down and weep when they find out people have
been killed in cold blood.
Honestly,
there are about a hundred videos reacting to this tragedy and if you would like
to take a look, I’ll leave the links below – they're probably filled with more
coherent thoughts than mine right now.
All
I know is that I have this platform, and even if only a few of you are out
there listening, I feel it’s my duty to at least say something. Anything.
I
wish I could say we should hold on to hope. I wish I could say there are
brighter days ahead. I wish I could promise a tomorrow of sunshine and
rainbows. But that’s not the reality.
The
reality is that there is gun violence all around us. The reality is that we
have lost hundreds of good people to bullets. The reality is that there have
been 16 mass shootings in the last 8 years in the US alone. The reality is we
wake up in the morning, get on our phones, and find a new tragedy hashtag
trending. The reality is we hope and pray, tweet, post a status (because
honestly, what else can we do?), while families mourn the loss of loved ones
who were taken away too quickly. The reality is that even today, in most
countries, firearms are easily available for anyone to purchase. The reality is
that it really could have been anyone, anywhere else in the world, who stood on
the other side of that gun. This is our reality. This is our “new normal.” But
I really, really don't want it to be.
This
is the list of people who tragically died that day.
Stanley
Almodovar III, 23 years old
Amanda
Alvear, 25 years old
Oscar
A Aracena-Montero, 26 years old
Rodolfo
Ayala-Ayala, 33 years old
Antonio
Davon Brown, 29 years old
Darryl
Roman Burt II, 29 years old
Angel
L. Candelario-Padro, 28 years old
Juan
Chevez-Martinez, 25 years old
Luis
Daniel Conde, 39 years old
Cory
James Connell, 21 years old
Tevin
Eugene Crosby, 25 years old
Deonka
Deidra Drayton, 32 years old
Simon
Adrian Carrillo Fernandez, 31 years old
Leroy
Valentin Fernandez, 25 years old
Mercedez
Marisol Flores, 26 years old
Peter
O. Gonzalez-Cruz, 22 years old
Juan
Ramon Guerrero, 22 years old
Paul
Terrell Henry, 41 years old
Frank
Hernandez, 27 years old
Miguel
Angel Honorato, 30 years old
Javier
Jorge-Reyes, 40 years old
Jason
Benjamin Josaphat, 19 years old
Eddie
Jamoldroy Justice, 30 years old
Anthony
Luis Laureanodisla, 25 years old
Christopher
Andrew Leinonen, 32 years old
Alejandro
Barrios Martinez, 21 years old
Brenda
Lee Marquez McCool, 49 years old
Gilberto
Ramon Silva Menendez, 25 years old
Kimberly
Morris, 37 years old
Akyra
Monet Murray, 18 years old
Luis
Omar Ocasio-Capo, 20 years old
Geraldo
A. Ortiz-Jimenez, 25 years old
Eric
Ivan Ortiz-Rivera, 36 years old
Joel
Rayon Paniagua, 32 years old
Jean
Carlos Mendez Perez, 35 years old
Enrique
L. Rios, Jr., 25 years old
Jean
C. Nives Rodriguez, 27 years old
Xavier
Emmanuel Serrano Rosado, 35 years old
Christopher
Joseph Sanfeliz, 24 years old
Yilmary
Rodriguez Solivan, 24 years old
Edward
Sotomayor Jr., 34 years old
Shane
Evan Tomlinson, 33 years old
Martin
Benitez Torres, 33 years old
Jonathan
Antonio Camuy Vega, 24 years old
Juan
P. Rivera Velazquez, 37 years old
Luis
S. Vielma, 22 years old
Franky
Jimmy Dejesus Velazquez, 50 years old
Luis
Daniel Wilson-Leon, 37 years old
Jerald
Arthur Wright, 31 years old
All
of this was done by one person. And it scares the living daylights out of me.
Let us take a moment of silence to honour their memory
I
will say that watching the reactions of people, especially members of the LGBT+
community has been so inspiring. This was a direct attack on their community
and they are standing up and coming together and celebrating Pride month, with
more vigor than ever before. It's them and the many other people who took a
stand for what is right that make me believe change is still possible.
It’s
very hard to believe right at this moment, but as many bad people as there are
in the world, there are more good, honest, brave people who are willing to
stand up and fight the good fight, no matter how uphill it is.
If
you live in the United States, I hope you call, or tweet your representatives,
and really help bring about a change.
("Did My Representative Take Money From NRA?" http://whoismyvoice.com/
“An Easy Guide To Contacting Your Elected Representatives About Gun Control”
https://medium.com/@nicolesilverberg/...
Find out where your Senator stands & demand action: http://everytown.org/senate-votes/?so...
Tweet Your Congressperson: http://everytown.org/tweet-at-congres... )
“An Easy Guide To Contacting Your Elected Representatives About Gun Control”
https://medium.com/@nicolesilverberg/...
Find out where your Senator stands & demand action: http://everytown.org/senate-votes/?so...
Tweet Your Congressperson: http://everytown.org/tweet-at-congres... )
At
this point, that’s our only option.
Change.
Stay
safe everyone.
(Side
note – I know this was a really sad post, and so were my last couple of
posts(kinda XD). I really don’t want this blog to be a place to store negative
vibes, so I will try to post good and hopeful things more and more frequently.
The world is still a good place – I believe that to the core of my being.
Change is coming. So relax, smile, and have a beautiful day :) )
Until
next time,
Bianka.
