Connecticut-10 years after shooting
2022.12.14 06:38
Connecticut-10 years after shooting
Budrigannews.com – Residents of the Connecticut town where one of the worst school shootings in American history occurred will commemorate the anniversary on Wednesday by attending vigils, paying their respects at a new memorial, and reflecting privately with loved ones.
The massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14, 2012, when a heavily armed gunman killed 20 young children and six teachers, shocked the nation and forever linked the picturesque New England town’s name to the nationwide epidemic of mass shootings.
The anniversary brings with it a slew of media and yet another round of recurring stress for many locals. In addition, it is a special time to remember the fallen, whether at a church service or in private with family and friends.
Po Murray, a gun-control activist who used to live next door to the 20-year-old gunman, stated, “It’s hard to believe that 10 years have gone by.” I think that there is still a lot of trauma in the community.
This year’s anniversary follows recent court rulings requiring conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and the parent company of his Infowars website to pay approximately $1.5 billion for disseminating false information about Sandy Hook Elementary School. The community’s grief was made worse by Jones’ years-long claim that the shooting was a hoax.
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It also comes six months after the first major federal gun reform in three decades was passed by Congress. This bipartisan bill was put together just weeks after two teachers and 19 elementary school students were killed in Uvalde, Texas, and 10 people were killed in a supermarket in Buffalo, New York, by gunfire.
Even though the bill only makes a few changes that aren’t expected to change things in a country with the highest annual rate of mass shootings among wealthy nations, some Newtown residents said it was a big step forward.
One of many grieving parents, Mark Barden, whose 7-year-old son Daniel was killed at Sandy Hook, is an advocate. He was a co-founder of the nonprofit organization Sandy Hook Promise, which aims to inform educators and students about the warning signs that can be used to identify potential mass shooters.
Barden stated that he hoped people would remember all gun violence victims on Wednesday and then consider what they can do to address the issue. He stated that it is essential to talk to others about potential solutions.
Barden told Reuters, “I feel it’s important that people hold some time to reflect on those who have lost their lives through this preventable shooting epidemic.” We can really make a difference if everyone does a little bit.”
According to the Newtown Bee, St. Rose of Lima Church, one of five churches offering services or opening their doors for prayer, will hold its annual memorial mass at 7 p.m., where many of the murdered 6- and 7-year-olds had worshipped.
A memorial that opened to the public a month ago is another location where residents can gather. The memorial’s focal point is a circular water feature with a single sycamore tree in the middle and the names of the 26 victims engraved on granite capstones. It is situated on two hectares (five acres) and borders a newly constructed elementary school.
A wreath containing 26 individual flowers will be laid at the memorial by representatives of the National Teachers Hall of Fame in Kansas early on Wednesday morning. The purpose of the ceremony is to make a symbolic connection between the memorial and one dedicated to educators who perished in the Kansas city of Emporia.
