A week ago, it was “thoughts and prayers” for the community of Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia. Blame was being thrown around like a hot potato.
For instance, the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department investigated the shooter last year after receiving a tip of a threat posted on Discord originating from his IP address.
Watching the body cam footage of the exchange between the student, his father, and the department, I found it to be a frustratingly lenient conversation. Ultimately it was decided there wasn’t enough evidence to pursue further action. Last week, the sheriff stated they probably missed an opportunity to notify the schools to monitor him. Talk about a extreme oversight.
Then there is the father, Colin Gray, who thought it was a great idea to gift his 14-year-old, bullied son an AR-15 style rifle for Christmas. A gun he could not have purchased, passed a background check for, nor met minimum age requirements necessary to even possess an AR-15. He missed every sign and set himself, his son, and his community up for failure.
Some blame the school, which not only received a warning call from Colt Gray’s mother that morning, but also from an unknown caller about the likelihood of a shooting taking place that day. Allegedly they pulled a kid with a similar name and his backpack from class just minutes before the actual shooter began his shooting spree. Tragic.
Colt Gray fits the profile of a typical school shooter. Bullied, isolated, mental health issues, access to guns, and hobbies in which killing is rewarded with endorphins. Such as hunting and playing violent video games. His home life is described as having been broken, turbulent, and abusive. Although Colt is the one who pulled the trigger, he was failed repeatedly by the adults and community around him.
Now, only one week later, our own community public schools are either closed, or on a soft lock down. We don’t send our children and loved ones to school to die. Thoughts and prayers can’t be our only recourse. We need fail safes at every opportunity to prevent this from happening again.
I believe in gun ownership, but also believe in regulations. Regulations in government, regulations for retailers, background checks, insured weapons requirements, courses, licenses, any and everything at this point. We can’t do anything about high level policy and safeguards right now, but surely there is something that can be done right here within our community?
Automatically locked doors and active shooter drills are already in place and have proven to be effective. What more can be done? I have seen suggestions for metal detectors and security guards. Others suggest increased prevention of bullying and therapy sessions. Others still suggest that we give teachers guns, while others are deeply opposed to it.
I don’t personally have the answers. But this is a conversation we need to be having more concertedly as a community. Can we have this conversation for real? Now, not later. Credible threats to our community safety exist now. We cannot become numb to this. We cannot turn a blind eye to this. We cannot fail to do more to prevent this. The lives of the children and administrators in our community depend on it.
A native of Phoenix, Arizona, Aundrea Sayrie is a firm believer in the power of words, faith and a strong spirit. Her greatest desire is to encourage those around her to discover and honor their truth, and to passionately live on purpose.
Any views or opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of the Watershed Voice staff or its board of directors.
