Comfortable With Chaos
There have been 647 mass shootings in America in 2022, according to gunviolencearchive.org. The worst part about such a large number? It continues to rise. Since the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been an overall increase of mass shootings across the United States. As citizens, are we becoming desensitized to violence? Is there so much violence happening around us in our communities that we have become numb to the idea? Do we no longer bat an eye when another school experiences a school shooting because it has become so common? These are questions we need to take into consideration for our own safety, as well as the safety of others.
Violence can be seen in a multitude of places in our everyday lives. You can wake up and see it on the TV, you can scroll through social media and see it in your feed, or you can simply hear about it from the person sitting next to you, because violence has become a common topic of conversation as it has become more prominent in society today. Violence is constantly around us. As we are hearing about it, it is important not to become insensitive to the situation. When asking MSU college student Zoe Knight if she feels we have become desensitized to violence, she replied, “I think we have. I hear about school threats, and I think nothing of it because it’s so common.” This is the mentality of many students in a school environment. However, violence is not only in our schools, but it can also be seen in our churches, public parks, and public settings. Brutalities have increased all over the United States. According to brennacenter.com, in 2020, murder rate increased by 30%, and the rate of offenses increased more than 10%.
As we see all this happening around us in our own communities and across the world, many are choosing to ignore what is happening. Perhaps many choose to disregard what is actually happening because of how discouraging such events can be. It is downright depressing to live in a world full of violence.
While average citizens are not expected to stop the violence, citizens should not allow themselves to be completely unaware of what is not only happening around you but across the globe. Innocent children and people are victims of these barbarities every day; we are morally obligated to be conscious of them.
