“Hear Here” Panel on Gun Violence in America at Rochester College

Earlier this month I had an opportunity to be a panelist at Rochester College for their “Hear Here” event. As they described it, “Hear Here is a discussion forum where students, faculty and community leaders come together to listen to one another and model how to have productive dialogue.”

The topic of the night was gun violence, and panelists received the following questions to consider:

-How does your professional perspective intersect with or engage the issue of gun violence in America?

-In your opinion, what are the true issues surrounding gun violence in America? (Particularly the school shooting epidemic that continues to leave our country in pain, anger, and grief?)

-How do you think this issue is shaping the minds of the American people? Is it only in divisive ways?

You can find my responses to the first two questions in the note: White Denial, Mental Health, and Mass Shootings at Notes from an Aspiring Humanitarian.

Since Rochester College is a private Christian institution, in response to the last question I felt it was important to mention that policy around gun violence should be of particular importance to religious leaders, as a growing number of young people are feeling a sense of inconsistency from elected officials and trusted and respected people within their close networks between the messaging they hear in regards to what is important about the value of life and the actions (or inactions) of the adults in their lives, including religious leaders.

These conditions are driving young people to imagine a world where the value of life is understood, recognized, and acted upon as being reflective of life across the entirety of the lifespan and respected as such.