This article contains sensitive and heartbreaking topics; please take care while reading
Three children and three adults have been killed following a mass shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee — marking the 129th mass shooting of 2023 in just the third month of the year. While the eyes of the country are on Nashville right now, celebrities are baring their souls, asking what it’s going to take to open the necessary hearts for change; how many times are we going to see breaking news headlines of school shootings before the right action is taken to stop them from happening?
Governor Bill Lee shared the following Tweet after learning about the mass shooting in Nashville, calling it a “tragic situation.”
Feeling underwhelmed by the reaction from Governor Lee, Takei pointed out the language in which he used to describe the devastating news unfolding in Tennessee. It’s far more than a “tragic situation,” and Takei is asking his own followers to take a moment and think about that.
Of course, Takei’s followers are sharing that same sentiment, noting that it’s far more than a “tragic situation” and pointing out that the word “tragedy” doesn’t come close to explaining what happens when children go to school anticipating a day of education, friendship, and growth and are met with a person wielding a gun. There isn’t a word to describe it, and there shouldn’t have to be one at all.
The tragic piece of the puzzle is how nothing is being done to stop the occurrence from becoming something seen as ordinary.
It isn’t lost on Takei or any of his followers that many of Lee’s focal points of conversation regarding protecting children were heavily discussed in terms of banning drag story time. While Takei didn’t spell that out himself, it’s not hard to imagine that anyone pointing out Governor Lee’s language right now remembers what he has shone a light on — what he deems the most important.
Details around this afternoon’s mass shooting are still slim, and rightfully so; protecting the innocent lives that were forever changed today is the most important matter right now, but as We Got This Covered learns more, we’ll keep you updated. Please take care of yourselves in the wake of another devastating mass shooting.