Guest Columnists: Kelsey Gastineau, Maya Neeley and Dena Ibrahim

NOTE WELL: The following piece appeared on June 1, 2022, in the Opinion section of the Nashville newspaper The Tennessean. It is co-authored by three local pediatricians. I offer it here for your reflection.

We can never accept school shootings and the death of children as a price for freedom. We must all act now to protect the children in our communities.

The most recent tragedies in Uvalde, Buffalo, and Laguna Woods remind us once again that gun violence in America is one of the most critical public health epidemics our nation currently faces.

As pediatricians, we see the devastating toll gun violence takes on children on a regular basis. As mothers, fathers, siblings, and neighbors, we grieve the lives of the children stolen far too soon from these preventable tragedies and urge our community to demand action from our leaders to reduce gun violence in our communities.

The shooting at Robb Elementary School represents the 213th mass shooting in America on only the 142nd day of the year; 19 young children and 2 teachers lost their lives.

Approximately 1 in 4 mass shooting victims are children. Furthermore, the first half of the 2021-22 school year represents the deadliest in recent history. This is a uniquely American issue. In fact, of all children aged 0-14 killed by guns in developed countries, 87% of them live in the United States.

Why gun violence is the top killer of U.S. children

Firearm injuries are the leading cause of death for children in the United States and in Tennessee. School shootings are unfortunately just the tip of the iceberg as many more children are killed by gun suicide, community shootings, domestic violence, and unintentional shootings.

Children of color and those growing up in underserved communities are at an increased risk to die from a gunshot wound, but also to witness and experience the long-term impacts of gun violence.

Children suffer from this violence in multiple ways. They are the victims of gun deaths, they have lost parents and caregivers, and they must live with toxic stress knowing that their school or their neighborhood might be affected.

A lack of comprehensive gun safety laws and the powerful gun lobby combined with our society’s glorification of guns have placed us in a position where we have seen 27 school shootings so far this year and over 200 acts of mass violence.

We all have a responsibility to protect children

One individual’s right to bear arms should not confer upon them the right to have automatic and assault-style weapons. Most importantly, one person’s right to bear arms should never take away another person’s right to life.

We can no longer evade the responsibility of protecting our children from indiscriminate gun violence. We owe it to the children of Newtown. We owe it to the children of Parkland. Now we owe it to the children of Uvalde.

When will we adults step up and act instead of asking children to pay the price? Protecting our children is the responsibility of every one of us.

Here are 5 solutions to move elected officials

These senseless shootings are preventable with common-sense, bipartisan, and evidence-based solutions. Contact your local and state representatives to advocate for common-sense gun legislation:

1. Expanded background checks are supported by nearly 90% of Americans, on both sides of the political spectrum including gun owners and non-gun owners. At least 40% of gun sales are sold outside of licensed dealers such as at gun shows or private online sales representing a dangerous loophole. HR8, the Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2021, would close this loophole, however, the Senate has not held a vote on this important piece of legislation.
2. A federal secure storage law, such as Ethan’s Law, would require gun owners to secure firearms when they are not in the owner’s possession. Between 70%-90% of guns used in violence affecting youth are guns acquired from the home of relatives or friends.
3. Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) Laws, also known as Red Flag laws, temporarily restrict at-risk individuals from accessing firearms. Nineteen States and DC have ERPO laws, shown to be beneficial in reducing gun deaths. Tennessee does not currently have one of these laws.
4. Hold our elected officials accountable for the decisions they are making and the deadly impact those decisions have on our community. According to the Pew Research Center, Tennessee has one of the highest rates of gun deaths in our country, and yet our state continues to loosen restrictions on gun ownership and has placed the owner of an ammunition company onto the Board of Education to create policies for Tennessee public schools.
5. Vote for officials that will help take a stand against this American epidemic. Check your voter registration now. Use trusted sources to learn about candidates.

We can never accept school shootings and the death of children as a price for freedom. We must all act now to protect the children in our communities.

The views expressed here are solely those of the authors and do not represent the views of our employer.

Kelsey Gastineau, M.D., Maya Neeley M.D., and Dena Ibrahim M.D. are pediatricians in Tennessee.

Additional Supporters: James Antoon, M.D., Ph.D., Charlotte Brown, M.D., Whitney Browning, M.D., Amy Fleming, M.D., Cristin Fritz, M.D. MPH, Patricia Frost, M.D., Katherine Freundlich, M.D., Karisa Grizzle, M.D., Sarah Hart, MSN, APRN, CPNP-AC, David Johnson, M.D., Heather Kreth, Psy.D., Carrie Lind, M.D., Karen Lakin, M.D., MSPH, My-Linh Ngo, M.D., Anuj Patel, M.D., Carlos Plancarte, M.D., MSc, Greg Plemmons, M.D., and Ryan Wolf M.D

♣ GOODPEOPLE ♣ HOW ABOUT YOU? ARE YOU INTERESTED IN SPIRITUAL DIRECTION ONLINE? Would you benefit from having a trustworthy companion to listen with you to your yearnings, hopes, struggles, burning questions? Someone who will pay attention with you to your quiet desire to cultivate a life of spiritual depth and meaning as well as to the One from whom all wonder, joy, and blessings flow? I am offering spiritual direction online. If you, or someone you know, are interested in beginning or returning to spiritual guidance CLICK HERE where you will find both practical information and explanations of spiritual direction. I’d be honored to hear and hold your unfolding story.