Four days after Super Bowl LVIII on Feb. 15, a mass shooting occurred at the Kansas City Chief’s victory parade.
According to Eyewitness News, despite this year’s Superbowl having brought in a record number of 123.4 million viewers, Kansas City’s victory parade turned into a scene of chaos and tragedy in the wake of celebration. According to CNN, 22 people were injured and one person—mother and DJ Lisa Lopez-Galvan—was killed by the gunfire.
According to an article published by NewsNation, after what witnesses claim to be a personal dispute, a frenzy broke out and two adult males pulled out handguns.
Those two men from Missouri attending the parade alleged the incident and were charged with second-degree murder: Dominic Miller and Lyndell Mays. After being questioned by detectives, Mays referred to the incident as an act of self-defense and claimed he was “just being stupid.”
Later, he confessed to shooting first out of proclaimed self-defense.
“In any other country, there would never have been so many people carrying guns at a football parade,” junior Ilana Vainstein said. “Someone died because one person got angry and decided that was an excuse to start shooting people; anyone who thinks like that shouldn’t have access to a gun in the first place.”
2024 has proven to be yet another year where mass shootings are prevalent across the United States. According to ABC news, 5,000 people have died due to US gun violence as of Feb. 16.
“I think using ‘human nature’ as an excuse for not implementing better gun control isn’t justifiable,” sophomore Chloe Kennedy said.
Legislation concerning gun violence is at the forefront of American politics, but heated debates persist over whether the best course of action is enforcing or loosening restrictions on firearms. In an interview with USA Today, Kansas City Police Department spokesperson Alayna Gonzalez said the city had 182 homicides in 2023. In 2024, Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas increased the amount of police officers and law enforcement around public areas.
“[This] event brought light to the prevailing gun violence issues,” freshman Amy Lang said. “However, I believe that it is possible for America to take steps in lessening the issue of gun control in our country.”
Some students believe finding solutions to these issues may be more of a systemic process that involves changing larger-scale issues such as poverty and economic barriers which lead to violent outcomes. “I think it is also super important to, instead of just trying to keep guns out of the hands of people with mental illnesses, try to prevent mental illnesses themselves,” Vainstein said.
An alarming number of young people were either victims or to some degree involved in the mass shooting. Due to the majority of students getting a full day off from school, many teenagers and children attended the parade eager to join in on festivities with family. Unfortunately, these youth were caught in the tragic events that unfolded.
According to the Wall Street Journal, half of the wounded victims are under the age of 16. In addition, two juveniles were arrested later that day for gun-related charges as well as resisting arrest. They have been charged with crimes connected to the shooting. “It’s concerning how the number of shootings with juveniles involved, whether that be as victims or as shooters, is increasing,” sophomore Shyla Agrawal said. “I think that elected officials should take firm action.”
As per the National Gun Violence Archive, there have been over 48 mass shootings in the United States since the beginning of 2024.
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