I am sick about today’s news out of Nashville, Tennessee. A mass shooting at Covenant School, a pre-school - 6th grade Presbyterian school. So far, three children dead. Three adults dead. And the shooter dead.
Those three babies had breakfast this morning, drank their cereal milk from the bowl, grabbed their backpack and went to school. And now they’re gone.
At least one reader of this newsletter attended Covenant School. They reached out and said they’re in college now, but went there as a child. And it’s still their family’s home church. They want to go home. They wrote that they’re “reading over your failure state games essay and just trying to ground myself.” I’m just….undone. I want to hug them. I’ve asked how we can help, as a community.
I know that this newsletter has a lot of readers in Nashville and the surrounding area. I also know that news like this hits everyone, no matter where they are. But especially the parents reading here who have kids in American schools.
I want you to know that we’re here. I am here. Please use today’s community thread to:
Express fear, sorrow, rage, hope, or any other feeling
Share your grief in the form of stories, hopes, conversations with one another
Let us know what action you are taking to help end gun violence
Share resources:
Do you work for a gun safety advocacy group? What do you need?
Do you donate to an org that is really doing good work in the space? Share the link.
What reading recommendations do you have for people who want to learn more about gun violence in America?
What sites, books, podcasts do you recommend to people trying to help family members and friend understand how gun safety laws can help?
Who is good on gun safety laws in your state? Who is not? Who do we need to help you vote out?
Please do not
Attack one another
Use unsafe or graphic language
Share what is shared here. This is just our little weeping corner.
Another shooting
I'm so very sorry, to your reader who attended Covenant. I'm not from Nashville, but I am from Tennessee (Chattanooga), and I attended a school as a child that sounds very similar in size and structure to Covenant. I know people who went there better than I know just about anyone else who's crossed my path in any other school or organization in my life.
I also have a kindergartner now, in another state (New Jersey) far away, in a very different kind of school, and I'm absolutely terrified to send him off tomorrow. He was home sick today and is getting very tired of my hugs but I can't stop.
Andy Ogles is a shit human being and we should all dedicate resources to getting him out of office.
NJ *feels* safer today because of its gun laws but I don't feel safe. I feel like I'm just signing my kid up for a shark tank.
Thank you for inviting us to share here. I’ll be coming back to the thread later to see if anyone else is in a place to offer more than this, but here’s all I have right now: I’m scared to send my little boy to kindergarten next year. I’ve never felt anything quite like this kind of fear--it’s like a jittery itchy fear. Most of my brain says “Odds are, he’ll be safe. Most kids don’t get shot or see people shot.” And all of the rest of me can’t square the image of him walking into one of these big buildings. Will it feel like this every day? Parents of older kids--does it feel like this every day?