Imagine 163% of Aspen’s population dying of gunshot wounds this year alone.
According to https://www.gunviolencearchive.org/, 10,448 gun-related deaths have occurred in the United States thus far in 2019. If people were dying every day in Aspen, the community would not stand for it, so we should act like our lives are in danger. A vote for Sen. Cory Gardner may as well be loading a gun for the next shooting.
Every day we debate political decisions, like taxes and education — these are important, but not life or death. This debate is life or death.
John Hickenlooper and Parkland survivors have similar ideas about ways to prevent mass shootings. These ideas include in-depth background checks, raising the minimum age to legally buy and own a gun, encouraging extreme risk protection, and banning all assault weapons.
As students from Aspen Country Day School, we believe that there should be more restrictive laws regarding guns and obtaining a gun should be an extremely extensive process, including an in-depth background check. School shootings affect us because, despite where we live, we still worry about a potential school shooting. Children and their families should not be scared to send their children to school knowing they might not come home. Therefore, consider who you vote for and where they stand on important issues such as gun laws. The next gun used to shoot a student may not yet be purchased by the shooter, and you can do your part to stop them.
Elle Eggleston, Amelia Hecht, Leo Helzberg, Jared Hurst, Max Marshall, Sawyer Mclernon, Peyton Thomas and Clea Welden
Eighth grade, Aspen Country Day