School Shootings: An excerpt from my newest book, “Sticks and Stones: A Comprehensive Guide to Bullying”

School Shootings: An excerpt from my newest book, “Sticks and Stones: A Comprehensive Guide to Bullying”

Though school shootings have been an existing problem in our society since the first known instance of a shooting in a public school (not bullying related) was reported on November 2, 1853, it is a relatively new threat to most. Much of the time these shootings are motivated by the intense pain and/or anger that the shooter feels because of bullying.

The fact is, this isn’t a new occurrence [the frequency is new however.] Years ago, news like this was not reported on as often as it is now. It seems that virtually every day you hear about a new shooting in a school somewhere in America. As horrible as it sounds, these shootings are becoming so common it has almost developed a sense of normalcy to it. [President Trump feels that building the wall is more important than school shootings] That in itself is a scary thought.

The history of school shootings is unknown by most. In fact, many believe that the first school shooting was the unspeakable massacre that happened at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado on April 20, 1999… The important thing to remember is that before Columbine there were school shootings reported in many other states. Many of the lists of shootings you will find online only date back to the 1960s. In fact, we did not start taking regular record of school shootings and/or researching causes for them until somewhat recently with the beginning of the ‘Crime and Safety Reports’ and the ‘National School Safety Center...’

Picture Courtesy of Guard911.com

 Per the History of School Shootings in the United States, between 1986 and 1990 there were at least 76 individuals killed at school with a gun. 65 of those being children, 6 being employees. 

Per the same report, it is indicated that the ‘National Safety Center’ reported the following figures [pertaining to individuals killed in school shootings per year.]

1992-1993: 55 deaths

1993-1994: 51 deaths

1994-1995: 20 deaths

1995-1996: 35 deaths

1996-1997: 25 deaths

1997-1998: 40 deaths

1998-1999: 25 deaths

1999-2000: 25 deaths

2000-2001: 19 deaths

2001-2002: 4 deaths

2002-2003: 14 deaths

2003-2004: 29 deaths

2004-2005: 20 deaths

2005-2006: 5 deaths

2006-2007: 38 deaths

2007-2008: 3 deaths

2008-2009: 10 deaths

2009-2010: 5 deaths

All together it is reported by the nyupress that between 1979 and 2008, “170 students and 110 school faculty or other adults were killed; at least 397 students and 75 adults were wounded [in school shootings.]” The motives for each school shooting varies, but many are related directly back to some sort of bullying.

The motives most commonly named are:

challenges to masculinity

gay-bashing

girl-bashing

domestic violence

gangs

and racism.

It is suggested by the nyupress that “in three years (2009-2011), 43 shootings took place. This is almost two thirds of the number of shootings that occurred in the preceding decade. In subsequent decades, it seems likely that shootings will continue to increase unless something different is done. In fact, at this rate the next decade 2009-2018) could well see 143 shootings- which is about the same as the preceding decades (1979-2008) combined.”

This isn’t a new problem, just a newly “brought to light” problem. Columbine brought international attention to an issue that has needed it for over 100 years prior. Our focus on this issue is still not what is should be, worldwide. This is one issue that we must address more forcefully, without delay.

For more bullying related information check out my book, "Sticks and Stones: A Comprehensive Guide to Bullying"

Sources:
https://palebluenews.com/sarah-huckabee-school-shootings-wall/
http://www.history.com/topics/columbine-high-school-shootings
http://k12academics.com/school-shootings/history-school-shootings-united-states#.WnJf0vlKuM8
https://nyupress.org/bullysociety/dataonschoolshootings.pdf
https://www.bjs.gov/index.cfm?ty=pbdetail&iid=5926

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DACA- No Human is Illegal

Let’s talk about something absurdly important and astoundingly human. Let’s talk a little about DACA, or the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. Plenty of people have heard the word DACA lately but few people have actually taken the time to learn what DACA is.

Imagine being a child and having a family member bring you into a place that you never knew in order for you to have a better education, or them to have a better job, or to escape violence. Imagine being this child and knowing nothing but "We are moving." Now, imagine growing up in this place thinking that you were just as much a part of the place as the little girl or little boy that sat next to you in class and learned with you... just the same as the children you ate lunch with and played on the playground with. You know equal to the individuals that you worked your first job with and maybe even attended prom with. Then imagine finding out one day that your whole world was a lie. There are people that could come in after you have lived in this place and had children there and deport you back to a place you never knew, without your family... Imagine doing everything right in order to be legally there once you found out you were not and still feeling as though you have to hide to stay safe because people different than you are coming to take you off to a place you don't know. Imagine feeling like you want to scream because your whole life changed with the outcome of one presidential race. That's the life of a Dreamer.

These Dreamers are important individuals to our society. They pay their taxes and work their asses off. They have families here and are our neighbors and friends. While there are more than 43 million immigrants in the U.S., according to the Migration Policy Institute, of those 43 million, about 11 million are undocumented immigrants. Around 22 percent of undocumented immigrants are under age 25, according to the Department of Homeland Security.  So, what’s the difference between being undocumented and being a Dreamer? What’s the difference between an illegal immigrant and someone “protected” by DACA? A program that in 2016 had about 1.9 million people that were eligible for it...

Well, let me break down some of the facts for you…

- About 788,000 have had their requests for DACA status accepted, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

- They must have come to the U.S. before turning 16.

- Have continuously resided in the United States without legal status since June 15, 2007.

- Be less than age 31 as of June 15, 2012 and at least age 15 at the time of the application.

- Be currently enrolled in school, have graduated high school or obtained a general development certificate (GED), or be an honorably discharged veteran.

- Have not been convicted of a felony or multiple or serious misdemeanors and not pose a threat to national security or public safety

- About 72 percent of respondents were in higher education.

- After getting DACA, nearly 80 percent of respondents said they got driver's licenses. About half became organ donors.

- DACA recipients average hourly wage was $17.46 an hour, which was up from $10.29 before receiving DACA.

- In a Center for American Progress survey of roughly 3,000 DACA recipients, nine-tenths of respondents said they had jobs.

- Of DACA recipients, around 77% (428,000) are Mexican. El Salvadorian immigrants make up the next highest percent, at 4%, no other country accounted for more than 3% of approvals.

-California has 162,000 deferred action recipients, compared with 88,000 from Texas. Both states border Mexico and have the highest populations of Mexican immigrants. 

-Arizona has the highest application rate. Around 66% of 34,000 eligible people have applied.

These humans are important to our Country, despite the Republicans relentlessly combating against them. And NO! Promises are not enough, we need a clean DACA bill that guarantees their ability to stay in this country.

These individuals did the right thing, they gave their most private information to the Federal Government with the assurance that they would be able to stay in the only country that most of them have ever known. We waited for months to find out where President Trump stood on DACA and it still seems that we are not 100% clear on what his stance is (because the man flip-flops left and right on just about every issue depending on whom he is talking to in that moment.) Most of the time though, the way the Trump administration would have you believe, most Americans are against DACA; well, SURPRISE, the administration is lying.

In fact, nothing could be further from the truth.

Most American’s want these humans to stay in the only country that they have ever known. Most Americans believe that no human being is illegal. If you need proof, a Morning Consult poll from April 2017 found that ‘56 percent of registered voters said Dreamers, another name for people who came to the U.S. as kids, "should be allowed to stay and become citizens if they meet certain requirements."’

If you want to be forthright about it, continuing to deport these individuals would be detrimental to the United States of America. There is proof of that in the form of actual numbers. The Center for American Progress estimated that the U.S. would lose about $460 billion in GDP over the next 10 years without DACA. It is also estimated that around 700,000 people could lose their jobs.

In the past year it is reported that more than “1,800 governors, attorneys general, mayors, state representatives, judges, police chiefs and other leaders signed onto a letter supporting Dreamers and DACA recipients.” A move showing how important these individuals are to us.

With the all so famous wall hanging over our heads (You know the one that most Americans are against. The one that originally the administration said Mexico would pay for, then decided that Americans had to pay for it and still hasn’t gotten approval to build) and the fact that most DACA recipients are Mexican, it is hard to reconcile in any mind how this isn’t a racial issue being ignited by our President more than just a political bargaining chip… 

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Women (and Men) March, again, in Women's Marches across the U.S. in 2018

Yesterday hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets to march on the 1st anniversary of the Women's March. A year ago I brought you an article about the 1st annual Women's March and since then have taken a political break in my writing. If you'd like to read my first article, here is the link: Political Labels and Recent Marches. On this monumental anniversary I could no longer stay silent. The pride I feel is indescribable.

I still tend to avoid labeling myself based on political affiliation; however, while sitting back and watching the chaos of the last year I have to say that I find myself using labels more and more everyday. I AM a Nasty Woman, I AM a liberal, and I AM a democrat. That doesn't mean that I always agree with everything the party does, but that does mean that I can no longer sit in silence as the Right tears this country apart. They do, after all, hold the Presidency, Senate and House. In the midst of a Government shut down and a still on going Russian investigation looming over the President's head I have discovered the importance of standing up and using your voice. Over the last year I have discovered that labels are sometimes necessary.

As the anniversary of the first march came and went it proved to this whole country, and myself, that our country still has hope and that this movement isn't going anywhere. It is just growing stronger. We are currently in day 2 of global demonstrations. There are marches scheduled in cities all the way to Munich.

Demonstrators in Las Vegas launched an effort to register as many voters as they can in an effort to take the midterm elections. Per FOX News, "in addition to the Women’s March co-chairs, Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood; Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev.; Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga.; Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas; Alicia Garza, co-founder of Black Lives Matter; and actress Marisa Tomei" are set to speaking the Las Vegas March. Many people held signs which proclaimed, "Grab them by the midterms." There is definitely an increased interest in the midterm elections on both sides. The outcome of the midterms will change everything. 

Picture courtesy of Yahoo News

Cities like Austin, TX; Los Angeles, CA; and New York City had massive turnouts. Austin, Tx alone says that their gathering was the biggest demonstration of people in Austin's history. This year the #MeToo movement, along with immigration, that all famous "Wall," women's rights, people who support DACA and CHIP (both of which expired well over 100 days ago with no solid action), LGBT rights, climate change supporters, and many marching against President Trump himself were among the protesters whom took to the streets in an effort to have their stances heard.

picture courtesy of FOXNews

According to CBS News you could hear marchers chanting, "Lock him up" in the streets. In Oklahoma City you heard protesters chanting, "We need a leader, not a creepy tweeter!"

Picture Courtesy of CBS News

CBS News also reported that members of the group "Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women of Seattle" burned sage and chanted in front of Seattle's rainy march. It is reported that crowds burst into cheers when a woman ran down the middle of the street carrying a pink flag with the word "Resist" on it in Richmond, VA. It is also reported by CBS News that in Palm Beach, Florida, which is home to Mr. Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate, several hundred people gathered carrying anti-Trump signs before marching.

Protests have not been limited to just the Women's March though. We have seen protests across the U.S. all year. From immigration protests to, most recently, the antiabortion bills. On Monday a group of women wearing red cloaks and white hats like the characters in the book and TV show "The Handmaid's Tale" marched in formation, their heads bowed in protest of the antiabortion bill that just passed. 

Picture Courtesy of Mic

According to MIC, the women were "protesting multiple anti-abortion rights bills, one of which was Senate Bill 415, legislation that bans what lawmakers are referring to as "dismemberment abortion" — otherwise known as "dilation and evacuation — a common second trimester abortion procedure." Mic reports that the bill passed the Senate. It is now headed to the house. If this bill becomes law, "anyone who performs the procedure would be charged with a state felony and face jail time." The Mic also reported that "the Senate also voted to advance another bill, which gives doctors an incentive to withhold information from their patients, especially in instances where they suspect a pregnant person may choose to have an abortion due to fetal anomalies."
The fact that people still come out and march even with the chaos our government is uplifting to me, and should be to you as well. This administration has driven people out in mass numbers to protest against them, but there has been another side effect of the moves of the Trump Administration and of Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell. Per Newsweek, Since Trump's election, a "record number of women have signed up to run for political office at every level." The thing that may surprise many is that a lot of the female candidates are finding that seats that were thought unwinnable to them are not. According to the same article, in Virginia, "progressive women unseated a total of 11 Republican male incumbents in the House of Delegates. One of these was Danica Roem, the first openly transgender woman to ever be elected to a state legislature."

If you are paying attention to what is going on you should be inspired and encouraged by the courage that people are finding in themselves despite widespread racist, misogynist, homophobic, and overall ignorant behavior of this administration. In his first year Trump's only major accomplishment has been to pass an overwhelmingly unpopular tax bill. If the Mueller investigation doesn't end in an impeachment the chaos will continue for at least another 3 years. I think we all did learn a valuable lesson from this. In order to hold the office of President of the United States of America one should have to have prior experience holding public office. This isn't a reality show where ratings are the most important thing, this is our county and we are demanding it back.

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