The gun laws of the US are once again in limelight as Salvador Ramos, a teenager, brutally opened fire at the Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. In the eighth mass shooting to take place this year, a total of 21 people died of which 19 were kids. This was preceded by Ramos shooting his grandmother who is critically injured. After privately texting someone on social media that he was going to attack his grandmother, he even shared he was going to open fire at an elementary school – without mentioning the name. After the accused had been on the site for approximately one and a half hours, authorities finally halted Ramos from causing further loss of life. The teenager was shot down in the encounter. 

THE SCHOOL YEAR POSTPONEMENT

As the locals and the local high school try to recover from the ghastly event that took place, the graduation for the Robb Elementary School has been postponed. Measures will be taken to ensure that the provisions of Greif counselling are made for the ones that were afflicted in this mass shooting. The town wallows in grief but is making efforts to help those who have suffered by raising funds for them.

THE RESPONSE OF THE POLITICAL ACTORS

President Biden made a plea to change the existing laws and to take action against the prevailing gun violence. He would also be visiting Texas soon and meet the families who lost their family members and offer his consolations. Leaders like Pope Francis spoke about how the whole event broke his heart and that is fundamental now that the laws regarding gun control are made stricter across the US. Many other political leaders have also echoed the same call, but what lies ahead?

THE WEAK GUN LAWS ARE TO BE BLAMED

States with weaker gun laws have been reporting more gun deaths than the ones where gun laws put more restraints. In Texas itself, one can buy a gun after one turns 18, putting forward the issue that makes happening of events like the present one more common. But how do the people see this? In a poll conducted by Pew Research Centre in 2021, around 53% of Americans call for stricter gun laws, 32% favour the ones extant, while 14% call for even more lenient gun control laws.

As the debate on the reforms of gun laws continues, myriad impediments are to be dealt with to revamp the same, like, the pro-gun stance of many Republicans, the reluctance of courts to give a judgement that withdraws support from such legislation and states having majorities of political actors that press for pro-gun laws. Despite the uproar for the change, it seems unlikely that these hurdles will be overtaken and the actions will end in a fruitful result of making the gun laws stricter.