Xinhua News Agency, Uvalde, USA, May 25th Newsletter: Grief, Trauma, Anger, and Disappointment——Recording the First Anniversary of the Uvalde School Shooting Incident in the United States
Xinhua News Agency reporter Wu Xiaoling Xu Jianmei
In the downtown square of Uvalde, a small town in Texas, the tears of mourners gushed out together with the fountain.
One year ago, on May 24, a large-scale school shooting occurred in the city’s Robe Primary School. An 18-year-old murderer shot and killed 19 students and 2 teachers. The tragedy shocked the world.
On the anniversary day, the small town did not hold official commemorative activities due to safety concerns, but there was an endless stream of citizens who spontaneously went to the downtown square to mourn. Many people went to the abandoned Robe Elementary School after the shooting to express their condolences. That night, thousands of people participated in the vigil at the amphitheater outside the Civic Center, releasing butterflies representing hope and lighting candles in memory of the dead.
On May 24, in the square of Uvalde, a small town in Texas, the United States, a girl presented flowers to mourn the victims of the school shooting. Today marks the one-year anniversary of the Uvalde mass school shooting. On May 24, 2022, 19 students and 2 teachers were killed in the shooting at Robe Elementary School in Uvalde. (Photographed by Xinhua News Agency reporter Wu Xiaoling)
People mostly wore themed T-shirts in various designs that read “Uvaldi Strong”. This sentence runs through the slogan and hope of the small town for one year.
Compared with a year ago, there are more graffiti walls commemorating the victims of children and teachers on the streets of the small town. In Robb Elementary School, which was obscured by fence baffles, the slogan “We grow together” on the outside wall of the classroom is still clear.
On May 24, items commemorating the victims of the shooting were placed outside the former Robb Elementary School in the small town of Uvalde, Texas, USA. (Photographed by Xinhua News Agency reporter Wu Xiaoling)
A mourner whispered next to the cross representing the victims: “One year has passed, and you have not been forgotten.”
What cannot be forgotten and let go is the trauma left to the living, the anger and disappointment with the status quo.
At the scene of mourning, people not only express their condolences, but also show their opinions. T-shirts read “Enough, End Gun Violence”; “We Demand Accountability” placards are held; a Texas resident named Martin placed a proclamation under each child’s cross , Accusing the National Rifle Association and unscrupulous politicians of abusing the right to own guns.
Gun supporters have also been angered and disappointed by the government’s oversight of gun regulation. George Jones stood at the intersection to demonstrate, waving placards at passing vehicles. He said that the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution grants citizens the right to bear guns, but the premise is that the premise is for “well-regulated” people, and the status quo of being able to legally purchase deadly weapons to cause killings at the age of 18 is far from being the case. “Well managed”.
On May 24, in the square in Uvalde, a small town in Texas, the United States, a man held a placard supporting gun control. (Photographed by Xinhua News Agency reporter Wu Xiaoling)
Teresa Nila, who works for the Texas state government, told reporters that she cannot accept that 18-year-olds can buy and use guns, and the gun control policy is a matter of life and death.
A recent poll shows that 40% of Americans believe that the schools in their communities are not safe enough and that there is a risk of gun violence; most Americans believe that controlling gun violence is more important than protecting the right to own guns. However, to Nila’s disappointment, it has been a year since the Uvaldi shooting, and she has not seen the progress she expected.
Jesse Rizzo, a relative of Jacquelin Casares, a child killed, said nothing had changed a year later. “(To politicians) we are just a number, and common sense tells you that you can’t let children and innocent people die in shopping malls, in schools.”
According to data from the US “Gun Violence Archive” website, 711 children and teenagers have been killed in shooting incidents in the US this year. Some American media commented that the Uvaldi massacre was one of the worst school shootings in American history, but it would not be the last tragedy of this kind that this country has encountered.
Many family members and mourners of the victims expressed their hope that the legal purchase age for guns will be raised to 21. “This is the first step in breaking the ice.” Nila quoted a child who survived the Uvaldi shooting. “If there is an age for gun ownership, I hope it is 100 years old.”
On May 24, the former Rob Elementary School in Uvalde, a small town in Texas, USA, displayed photos of victims of a school shooting. (Photographed by Xinhua News Agency reporter Wu Xiaoling)
Nila brings an elaborate painting to the memorial. The heads of the 21 students and teachers who died staring at the world outside the frame are vivid. “For the living, wounds never heal.”
“Look, no matter what angle we stand at, they are all looking at you.” Nila said, looking at the 21 pairs of eyes in the painting.
Editor: Zheng Jianlong