The 21-year-old former high school football player tackled a woman and her teenage daughter in front of him, bringing them down. He barely knew the pair, but he used his body as a shield to keep them from being hit by the barrage of bullets.
Wednesday, October 11, 2017
One family’s path through horror of shooting on Las Vegas Strip
The 21-year-old former high school football player tackled a woman and her teenage daughter in front of him, bringing them down. He barely knew the pair, but he used his body as a shield to keep them from being hit by the barrage of bullets.
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While reading this article, my heart was aching for those who experienced this horrific event. I could not believe that this was someone's reality. The events told by this family should only exist in movies. No one should have to decide to use their body as a shield if they did not directly sign up to do so. The fact that this one person has caused hundreds to have to make this decision is just so shocking and sad. However, the actions that this family took and witnessed others taking showing the reality of humanity: though evil exists, good is always there to battle against it. This event has caused hundreds to show their true humanity as they helped strangers to safety and shielded people who didn't even know their names. Its crazy to think that one of the worst acts of a human can do has resulted in the best in people. People who didn't know each other are now desperately trying to get in contact to ensure safety.
Despite the good that was shown from this horrific event, it should be noted that no one should have to resort to these life/death decisions ever. The Watkins' were all able to come out and unite but there are dozens of families who will never see their father, mother, son , daughter, sister, or brother again. Its the lost of these people that show why there needs to be a change in the gun control laws in this country. The shooter should not have been able to unleash that many bullets into a crowd during a music festival. It is not a place of war and there should have been no way for him to get war -grade weaponry. Though I would like to see the law change so that all guns are prohibited, I understand that this is almost an impossibility and I respect people's wish to maintain their second amendment. However, I would like to see guns be better regulated. There needs to be better, more effective background checks as well as more extensive licensing. In addition, regular citizens should only be able to buy guns that are specifically used for hunting/sport or self-defense. We do not need machine guns to protect our families. That caliber of weaponry should never be made available for the public. In addition, any equipment that turns a regular gun into a dangerous high caliber gun should also be banned instead of free flowing as it currently is.
I can only imagine the fear this family felt, along with the other thousands of people there, as they had to fight for their lives amid a time that was supposed to be full of laughter, love, and fun. There were so many acts of bravery and selflessness, which always arise in times of pure distress and chaos. People risked and lost their own lives to protect the lives of their loved ones and people they barely knew. It is absolutely insane to think that something of this magnitude could even happen at an entertainment event, and even crazier to think that there was nothing that could have been done in precaution of such an occurrence by the event staff. I still have hope that some form of legislation in regards to gun reform will be passed through our government to prevent anything like this from ever happening again. My heart goes out to all of those effected by those in the Las Vegas shooting, as I know they still have so much healing to go through.
This recounting of the horrific Las Vegas shooting, now an event that will remain in American history, feels factual, but also completely emotional at the same time. To expand on this, there are many indisputable statements in this article. “She had brown eyes,” for example. This is a factual statement. But it has a ton of feeling behind it. The author is attempting, successfully, in my opinion, to pull the humanity out of this now dead body, emphasize the life that was once there. This article is made up mostly of these types of statements, giving the reader both a sense of detachment, an understanding that they will never understand the feelings the people in the article felt unless they go through something similar. However, the way it’s written also surprises the reader. It’s interesting to know that, in a traumatic situation, you’d notice the color of the girl’s eyes. It’s a chilling way to explore human behavior.
I also found the gender dynamic that emerged during this event interesting. The males' first instinct was to protect and shelter women In dire circumstances such as this, people's reactions are raw, they act, they don't think. It goes to show how strong sexism/the pressure males feel to protect females is ingrained in our minds. Not saying these men shouldn't have helped the women. Just something worth noting.
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