We are failing them
As a television news anchor, I'm always cautious about what I say. It's my job to be neutral. I wrote this blog last Friday. I didn't post it because I know the stats tell us schools actually are quite safe, that riding in a car is much more dangerous. And I think it's important that our children know that information. If we allow them to be crippled with fear, we are creating a terrible environment for them, that's not good either. As parents, we should tell our children that school shootings overall are quite rare, but I would argue one is too many and these are still fears our children face. So, I decided to post it.
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Today a friend at work emailed me this exchange. It is a powerful conversation included in coverage of the Sante Fe shooting at the local and national level.
As parents, many of us choose our homes, our neighborhoods, our communities based on whether they'll be safe, good places for our kids. When our children are little, we put safeguards on our cabinets so they can't open the ones with our cleaning supplies. We make sure they know certain tools shouldn't be touched without mom or dad right there supervising. We require them to take driving lessons. We spend our lives balancing how to teach them while also letting them learn and explore.
It's what we do as parents. We are their protectors.
I work in TV news. When we cover a story about a mom or dad harming a child, you should see the responses we receive. Parents find it abhorrent, rightly so, that a parent could do such a thing to a child. Because we are supposed to take care of them.
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Today a friend at work emailed me this exchange. It is a powerful conversation included in coverage of the Sante Fe shooting at the local and national level.
Reporter: "Was there a part of you that was like, 'this isn't real, this would not happen in my school?'"
Student: "No ... it's been happening everywhere, I always kind of felt like eventually it was going to happen here too."
Read that response again or watch it here. If you read it and don't have an urge to cry or scream or throw up, read it again, read it until you feel what life is like for our children. OUR children.
As parents, many of us choose our homes, our neighborhoods, our communities based on whether they'll be safe, good places for our kids. When our children are little, we put safeguards on our cabinets so they can't open the ones with our cleaning supplies. We make sure they know certain tools shouldn't be touched without mom or dad right there supervising. We require them to take driving lessons. We spend our lives balancing how to teach them while also letting them learn and explore.
It's what we do as parents. We are their protectors.
I work in TV news. When we cover a story about a mom or dad harming a child, you should see the responses we receive. Parents find it abhorrent, rightly so, that a parent could do such a thing to a child. Because we are supposed to take care of them.
Read it again.
Reporter: "Was there a part of you that was like, 'this isn't real, this would not happen in my school?'"
Reporter: "Was there a part of you that was like, 'this isn't real, this would not happen in my school?'"
Student: "No ... it's been happening everywhere, I always kind of felt like eventually it was going to happen here too."
Our children are telling us they're scared. And they should be. Sure, school shootings are rare when you look at the bigger picture, but guess what, a relatively small number of kids die from furniture tipping over, yet, in our home we have bookcases anchored and shelving units hidden in our closets. It's what we do as parents.
So parents, I'm asking you, let's be parents. I don't know what the answer is. I am not here to preach about gun control or mental illness or any specific topic. I don't know what the answer is, and I don't believe it's as easy as finding a single answer. However, I also believe that far too often, far too many people in power have chosen to put their egos in front of our children. That needs to stop.
As parents, we need to demand it.
Read it again.
