Beyond thoughts and prayers

By Marian Wright Edelman

It happened again.

This time, the mass school shooting was at the Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee. The victims were custodian Michael Hill, principal Katherine Koonce, substitute teacher Cynthia Peak, and nine-yearold third graders Evelyn Dieckhaus, William Kinney, and Hallie Scruggs.

Hallie was the daughter of the senior pastor at Covenant Presbyterian Church, the congregation where the private pre-K through sixth-grade school was located. Once again, a place of worship and elementary school that should have been sanctuaries were instead reminders that there are no safe havens from guns in our nation.

And once again, the shooter was armed with a handgun and two assault-style rifles. As Newsweek reported, “One of the weapons used appears to be a KelTec SUB2000 Carbine Rifle, a foldable semi-automatic weapon that the manufacturer describes as ‘fun to shoot.’”

The KelTec website went on: “Folded, it tucks away nicely in situations where space is limited, but it’s quick to deploy in situations where time is of the essence.”

Why does our nation continue to allow weapons of war that have no business in civilian hands to be manufactured, marketed, and mass distributed as fun-to-shoot, convenient ways of killing our children?

Soon after the shooting Rep. Andy Ogles, the Republican member of Congress who represents the Nashville community where the shooting happened, said in a statement that as a father of three he was “utterly heartbroken by this senseless act of violence.”

But others were quick to reshare the Christmas message Rep. Ogles posted to social media in 2021 that featured a photo of him, his wife, and two of their three children smiling and holding rifles as they posed in front of a Christmas tree.

Burchett, was singled out for candidly explaining what he thought they would do next in our nation that stands alone as the only industrialized nation where gun violence is the leading cause of death for children and teenagers: “It’s a horrible, horrible situation. And we’re not gonna fix it.”

When a reporter followed up to ask Rep. Burchett if he thought there was any role Congress could play, he answered, “I don’t see any real role that we could do other than mess things up.”

When another reporter asked specifically what else could be done to protect other children like his own little girl and keep them safe at school, he replied that his child was homeschooled.

In his opening prayer in the Capitol the day after the shooting, Senate Chaplain Retired Rear Admiral Barry C. Black gave a rare, pointed, powerful plea on behalf of our nation’s leaders that stands as a prayer from all of us:

Eternal God, we stand in awe of You.

His caption read: “The very atmosphere of firearms anywhere and everywhere restrains evil influence—they deserve a place of honor with all that’s good.” And so in that family picture, guns were given their place of honor alongside the symbols of the good of Christmas.

Rep. Ogles is just one of a group of elected officials who have made a deliberate show of displaying themselves and their children in Christmas cards that glorify guns along with the birth of Christ.

Meanwhile, as many of those same officials once again offered their thoughts and prayers, another Republican Tennessee Congressman, lifetime NRA member Tim

Lord, when babies die at a church school, it is time for us to move beyond thoughts and prayers.

Remind our lawmakers of the words of the British statesman Edmund Burke: ‘All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good people to do nothing.’

Lord, deliver our Senators from the paralysis of analysis that waits for the miraculous.

Use them to battle the demonic forces that seek to engulf us.

We pray, in Your powerful name, Amen.

Bbs

Continued from page 6 elevating the work of Black artists in Minnesota. Ra’Shawnda

C. Scott, who participated in the show, founded Pieces of Kandakes Jewelry, a luxury jewelry brand, in 2019. Her designs are inspired by ancient history and African culture. As someone who often throws events and holds work-

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Continued from page 14 shops, Scott knew the importance of participation in the exhibit, not only for her brand but for her luxury jewelry business. been a sport plagued by several myths about why Blacks aren’t more involved, ranging from fear of the water to swimming ruining our hair. But there’s also some truths, such as having less access to pools and swimming facilities and the cost factor, especially for those from disadvantaged areas.

“I do realize that there is a need for more exposure for artists in Minnesota, especially for me and jewelry, just not Minnesota, just in general,” she said. “There’s a very slim lane for jewelry designers, so I’m hoping to get more exposure so that I can inspire other artists as well.

But Black hair can’t be totally dismissed. “It’s more difficult than I would say for us than other people,” said Curtiss. “But most of the stereotypes are false. I love every day trying to prove those stereotypes wrong.”

Tiffany Monique Quash, a former division II swimmer, says that certain stereotypes, such as Black people can’t float, existed when she swam competitively, and sadly still exist today. “I experienced a lot of discrimination as a swimmer. That’s one of the reasons that really drove me to write the piece,” said Quash of her 2018 paper on Black swimmers’ experiences in college that was published in the “International Journal of Aquatic Re search and Education.”

She also used that as her dissertation topic for her Ph.D., in quantitative research methodology at American University. In her spare time, she coaches swimmers in the D.C.-area. “More education and reeducation is needed,” said Quash. But despite the stereotypes, Blacks can swim.

Arizona State Senior Associate Athletic Di rector Deana Garner-Smith pointed out, “I’ve

Denimani Livingstone was also a part of the exhibit and shared how much the day meant to him. “The fact that I was essentially nominated to represent within the building that’s for the people is a great opportunity.

“Being from Ghana, you know, there are certain things that we don’t imagine coming our way,” he said. “Me being able to show myself and speak and have a voice within this building is a very powerful thing.”

The Ghanaian and Liberian Livingstone has been designing for eight years, but believes none of it would be possible or worth doing without a sense of community.

“It’s essential,” he said. “We would just be solo on a hill if there wasn’t a community. I feel like this is a great opportunity for me to grow my personal community as well as the overall industry within Minnesota, so I’m also looking forward to more events like this

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Continued from page 14 this season’s Twin Cities championship, averaging a team-high 18.3 points per game, netting a season-high of 26 points twice. where I can meet more people in the community. We can grow as individuals, but also grow as a collective platform.”

Olivia Wren, 5’10” junior guard, Minneapolis Roosevelt—Wren, an outstanding scorer and defender who reached the 1,000-point mark this season, led the Teddies to the Minneapolis City Conference and Twin Cities championship.

Lawson believes that because the fashion and advertising industries have perpetuated a Eurocentric standard of beauty along with unrealistic body expectations, which have led to eating disorders and other mental health issues, Porte should team up with organizations to counter that as well.

Looking forward, Porte is set to expand its team and is seeking more individuals to become a part of its agency. “We’re willing to meet up with whoever we need to meet up with, talk to whoever we need to talk to, to create these opportunities for our talent because they deserve it,” Lawson said.

Abdi Mohamed welcomes reader comments at amohamed@ spokesman-recorder.com.

Photo courtesy of University of CaliforniaBerkeley Athletics Department been working with our aquatics program, our swimming and diving teams, the women’s triathlon team, our women’s water polo team, and there’s definitely more diversity within those sports. For the past three or four years, we have had three African American swimmers on our team.”

Said Whitley, “The opportunities that this sport can give you are unparalleled.”

“The stereotypes aren’t true,” concluded Curtiss. “African Americans can swim.”

Charles Hallman welcomes reader responses to challman@spokesman-recorder.com.

Dr. Mitchell Palmer McDonald welcomes reader responses to mcdeezy05@gmail.com.