On Monday, March 22, a shooting broke out in a supermarket in Boulder, Colo. The gunman, identified as Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa, 21, will be charged with 10 counts of murder. The motive has not been discovered yet. This is the seventh mass shooting that has happened in 2021, following a lull from 2020 due to the pandemic. It is hard to deny the fact that as the pandemic moves in the direction of being less of a problem, mass shootings will come back to being just as prominent as before.
Alissa, described as a young white male with dark hair and a beard, arrived at the supermarket with a tactical vest, and AR-15, and another semi-automatic handgun. Within minutes, police were notified of his presence and arrived on the scene. Eventually, Alissa was shot in the leg and surrendered, but not after killing 10 innocent people.
CNN reports that the gunman’s brother explained his past, how he was bullied in high school and became anti-social and paranoid, and also was found guilty of assault in 2018, yet was still eligible to buy firearms. This represents the problem in American politics and culture, as there has also been a recent increase in violence against Asian-Americans.
President Biden addressed the problem of gun violence, saying he did not need to wait another minute to address the problem. Specifically, he has been pushing for the Senate to pick up bills that expand background checks and close some loopholes because the House has already passed them. He also mentioned banning assault weapons, although no plan has been laid out for that.
Many gun control advocates are frustrated with the current policies and are pushing for executive orders to be passed, which could happen much quicker as it would not have to be voted on in Congress. He has announced that he has to address problems with infrastructure before anything regarding gun violence, stirring up frustration among civilians who want change. For now, the government is working on executive actions and will hopefully roll them out soon.
It is also important to remember and honor the victims of the shootings, and may they rest in peace.
Rikki Olds, 25
Eric Talley, 51
Denny Stong, 20
Teri Leiker, 51
Kevin Mahoney, 61
Tralona Bartkowiak, 49
Suzanna Fountain, 59
Jody Waters, 65
Lynn Murray, 62
Neven Stanisic, 23
VALLEY promotes staying safe and extends love to all during these chaotic times.
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