Americans Need to see Graphic Mass Shooting Images
As it did with Emmett Till’s murder, a powerful image can inspire action
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As the old saying goes, desperate times call for desperate measures. Two more mass shootings within days of each other present an opportunity to finally do something — anything, for crying out loud about the pathetic and useless gun laws that make the United States a laughingstock in the civilized world.
The anger we’re seeing right now, from politicians to sports celebrities and most of our fellow American citizens, is palpable. It’s not as if we haven’t seen this level of anger before. We certainly have. But this time feels different. I hope it’s different.
Time will tell, of course, because the attention span of folks in this country continues to get shorter and shorter. And that is why we must go where we have not gone before. It’s time for the American people to see the vile and horrific photos from mass shootings like the one experienced at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas.
It’s not a novel idea, as we’ve seen the topic discussed before in various media outlets. Up until now, we’ve seen resistance to such measures. I realize it’s a delicate balance for our media. We must always consider the sensitivity of the families involved.
But folks, what the hell are we doing? You and I know this will soon fade into history along with the last shooting and the one before that. We always move on with nothing to show for it. Perhaps the shock of the photos would spur such public outrage that even our spineless Republican politicians would finally get something done. Historically speaking, it’s not without precedence.
In 1955, Emmett Till was brutally murdered in Mississippi by a white store clerk’s husband and half-brother. They took it upon themselves to avenge Till’s supposed flirtation with the clerk when exiting the store. They ran into Till’s home, dragged him from his bed, and beat him to the point of disfigurement. They then shot him and tossed his body into the Tallahatchie River with a cotton-gin fan attached with a barbed-wire laced to his neck to weigh him down. Till was 14 years old.
