It is getting increasingly terrifying to attend any nationally known event, and tragically, these fears are often well-founded.
After a thrilling victory for the Kansas City Chiefs at the Superbowl on Sunday, a rally was thrown in Kansas City, Missouri, to honor the players and the big win for the team. However, the celebration was cut short after gunshots were fired into the crowd.
23 people were caught in the gunfire, tragically killing a radio host Lisa Lopez-Galvan, who was a mother of two. No motive has been publically released as of yet, but it has been confirmed that the shooting was criminal in nature rather than a terrorist attack.
And yet, the most heartbreaking aspect of this is that eight of the victims in this attack were children. These children were not harmed as a result of parental negligence—each of these families was attempting to celebrate a joyous occasion, but unexpectedly, their children were harmed in a way that they could not have foreseen.
Equally as concerning is the fact that both of the perpetrators in the shooting were minors—at 17 years old, both shooters were under the federal legal age to own any type of firearm. Fortunately, they are likely to be both tried as adults; this is in order because, since the two perpetrators were intentionally using weapons exclusively for adults while knowing the consequences, they were committing acts that they could comprehend the results of.
Both suspects are currently in custody, but the fact remains that much of this violence was between minors. Gun violence becomes seemingly more and more prevalent each year, and watching it leech into the younger age groups is even more tragic; nobody, especially children, should have to be either perpetrating or in fear of gun violence.
Regardless of whether this was a result of football rivalry or taking advantage of a large gathering to harm others, there were, originally, no violent implications of the rally for the Chief’s victory.
Thankfully, about half of the victims have already been discharged from the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries and are expected to recover. However, several more are critically injured. No further deaths were recorded besides the loss of Lopez-Galvan.
Players, coaches, and staff are all safe, but they have expressed their condolences and concern for the families and individuals affected. Although they managed to come out of the situation safely, they are deeply affected by what happened to their fans.
Increasingly, large, nationally-known events are at risk of becoming the site of violence and tragedy. Families should feel safe and joyous at celebrations rather than in fear for their family’s well-being. Policy needs to change to prevent occurrences like this—minors should not have the opportunity to obtain such a deadly weapon.
Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves said it best: “I’m angry at what happened today. The people who came to this celebration should expect a safe environment.”
