Load. Click. Finger. Trigger. Aim. Shoot. Blood. Screaming. Crying. Chaos.
Then Becomes
Don Bosco. Thistletown Collegiate. York University. Eaton Centre. Same story, same people, same reason. All of these places have one thing in common. They have all been affected by useless, and preventable gun violence. As Im sure as you all know, in Canada, it is legal (with proper documentation) to own a firearm. How much sense does it make to say its okay for you to own a gun, but please don’t shoot anyone, because then it’s illegal?
And stop, before you say anything, I know the common argument is ‘guns are form of protection’. I’m sorry, aren't other countries invaded using the opposite of that logic? Because I can think of several countries who have been invaded due to the fact that they were just ‘protecting’ themselves. If guns were illegal, there would be less people to protect yourself from, who had guns, using a gun. Less guns in general, would mean less people need a gun!
Now, I know some people will also argue that people will still find a way to illegally purchase firearms, so there is no point of making them illegal. True that, true that, which must mean weed is legal, oh wait… We need to crack down on those druggies who get high in their basements and harm no one but themselves … Oh, guns, let’s make those open to the public. Weed, illegal, gay marriage, illegal, crossing the street not at a crossing walk, illegal! Owning a shotgun that could ends someone life… Okay after a simple background check, here you go, we trust your judgment.
Let me be less sarcastic, and let's start looking at the facts and statistics. In Canada, when in comes to guns, the rules are straight forward. There are 3 categories. Authority, for example, soldiers, police, RCMP, etc. Then there is licensing, if you are a hunter, or work in high risk areas, and the minor rule, which frightens me. Why? Because it states that anyone under the age of 18 who hunts, or does target practice, for 'recreational purposes' can legally be in the possession of a firearm, under “parental consent”. I'm not old enough to vote, but I'm old enough to handle a weapon? The reason I'm not allowed to vote, is because I'm too young to make such an 'impacting desicion. Makes sense I guess, but shouldn't the same reasoning apply when it comes to a gun? But the stats are even more alarming. According to NOWTORONTO, Canada ranks right up there with Israel and Northern Ireland, when it comes to deaths among children under 15, because of guns. Canada's firearms-related homicide rate is three times higher than Australia's and six times higher than England's! Handguns accounted for 40 per cent of all homicides in Toronto between 1998 and 2013. Not to mention over 600,000 guns are registered in Canada, 10,000 of them being right here in Toronto. And we're telling the Americans to clean up their act? While we're here handing out guns like lollipops!
Now, your probably thinking, Furqan, it's not the legal guns that are causing problems duh, it's the illegal ones! The scary thing is, ironically, almost every gun used in a massacre, to date, in North America, was registered. From the Stanfield International Airport shootings earlier this year, to the Eaton Centre shooting back in 2012. The very guns that your fighting so hard keep, are the very ones that are killing our people. Legal guns are more dangerous than illegal ones! These stories all lead back to one thing. A registered handgun. It all comes down to that decision of having a gun in your home. By not establishing gun control, we put a lot of families in danger, including your own.
Now, we all remember the Parliament Building shooting last year. No one is safe when it comes to gun violence, not even our leaders. There was a lot of debating going on, just because of the gun he had used. And people have a right to be outraged. The Winchester Model 94 is perhaps the most common and recognizable deer-hunting rifle in North America. Which means he could've gotten the weapon from anywhere; by stealing it, or even borrowing it from someone licensed. If this gun (along with many others) had been illegal, then maybe there would've been less casualties. We hear all these stories on the news, from students bringing their parents registered gun to school, to mass murders in public places, it's already a given, that we don't need guns. I personally, just don't see the reason! As I said before there are ridiculous things out there that are illegal, but crazily enough, owning gun isn't one of them. According to the CDC, Gun owners frequently state that they own guns for protection, even though the guns in their homes impose a much greater risk to their lives than an actual intruder! Jokes on you! You have more chances of being shot by your own gun, then someone breaking into your house and shooting you with another. Let's look at gun control this way. Take a box of matches for example. They are used to light a fire, usually for warmth for. But falling into the wrong hands, they can be dangerous. A person holding a box of matches, can easily become a arsonist. Guns can also be dangerous. Falling into the wrong hands, they can be fatal. A person holding a gun, can easily become a murderer.
Every time I hear people talk about making guns legal, I can't help but imagine my own family, a perfect day, then someone coming out, and shooting at us. Murder by a weapon our government has basically spoon-fed to those who are not supposed to have them. A life lost due to poor decisions. I can't bear to think about loosing someone so close to me, to something that could've been so easily prevented. We need to make guns illegal all around. No special privileges, no permits, or warrants. Guns are for those who have guns in theirs job description. We can't change the past, but we can help make the future a little safer.
Einstein had once said “The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it. So, what can we as students do? We can sign petitions at DoSomething.org, teachers and parents can sign adult petitions as well. Donations are also helpful to go towards helping people get the resources for campaigns. You can donate to the Everytown For Gun Safety foundation, they help educate families and communities on gun safety. Don’t give in to peer pressure when it comes to all spectrums of violence, and in general just be kind to people. I know there isn’t much we can do, as it is a political issue, and in the end up to our leaders but the change has to start somewhere! History wasn't made by the lazy. For equality, King spoke, for peace, Ghandi preached, and now I have used sarcasm, wit, and cold hard facts to convince you why we, as civilians don't need firearms.
Gun control has been a heavily debated, and controversial topic. But there has been so much proof that guns should be illegal. So tell me. How much more, is it going to take you, to open your ears. To hear that loud popping sound in a dark alleyway, a child screaming, a mother crying, a father mourning. How much more is it going to take you, to listen. How many more? How many more collages? How many more classrooms? How many more movie theatres? How many more houses of faith? How many more shopping malls? How many street corners? Enough. Before we all know someone who is on that list. No more who they might’ve been, or if we had just done something before? Its time. As a human being, as a Canadian, as a member of this community. As I had said time and time again in this speech, we don't need guns. Giving people a gun just opens doors to a series of more problems. The whole "with great power comes great responsibility" thing doesn't work well with humanity. You can't give a person a weapon and expect them not to use it. At the end of the day, guns don’t kill people. Surprise! People kill people. And we do it with worse things, like hatred, jealousy, and anger. We can’t eliminate human nature, but we can help to get rid of gun violence, and establish gun control. The next time you are debating against gun control, I want you to imagine a loved one, someone you can't bear to think of loosing, at the other end of that registered hand gun.
Load. Click. Finger. Trigger. Aim. Whatever happens next, is up to you.
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