NEWSLETTER
Another day, another mass shooting in America. It was just a typical Saturday afternoon in the United States when a gunman senselessly murdered eight people at an outlet store in Allen, Texas, on Saturday afternoon. I’ve done this once in my time here at BN — last May when 21 people were killed at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas — but today, we won’t talk much about football.
- Around 3:36 PM on Saturday, a gunman opened fire at the Allen Premium Outlets in Allen, Texas — about 25 miles north of Dallas — killing eight people and wounding seven others before being shot and killed by police. A photo obtained by CNN shows what appears to be the gunman lying on the ground after being shot, with an AR-15-style firearm nearby. He was decked out in black body armor and appeared to have several extra magazines strapped in his chest gear.
- President Biden released a statement on Saturday:
“Jill and I are praying for their families and for others critically injured, and we are grateful to the first responders who acted quickly and courageously to save lives.
Federal, state, and local law enforcement are working closely together to investigate this attack and I have directed federal agencies to provide all needed support.
Yesterday, an assailant in tactical gear armed with an AR-15 style assault weapon gunned down innocent people in a shopping mall, and not for the first time. Such an attack is too shocking to be so familiar. And yet, American communities have suffered roughly 200 mass shootings already this year, according to leading counts. More than 14,000 of our fellow citizens have lost their lives, credible estimates show. The leading cause of death for American kids is gun violence.
Since I signed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act into law and took two dozen executive actions to stem the tide of gun violence, we have made some progress. States are banning assault weapons, expanding red flag laws and more — but it’s not enough. We need more action, faster to save lives.
Too many families have empty chairs at their dinner tables. Republican Members of Congress cannot continue to meet this epidemic with a shrug. Tweeted thoughts and prayers are not enough.
Once again I ask Congress to send me a bill banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. Enacting universal background checks. Requiring safe storage. Ending immunity for gun manufacturers. I will sign it immediately. We need nothing less to keep our streets safe.”
- Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray — who attended Allen High School — took to Twitter, asking when the senselessness would stop. “This is sickening,” Murray said. “Prayers to the mass shooting victims in Allen, Texas. If there is anyway I can help those affected by this tragedy please let me know. When is this shit gonna stop?”
- Murray wasn’t alone. A handful of NFL players with local ties to the Allen area took to Twitter to offer their thoughts and prayers for the victims of Saturday’s massacre:
- I don’t have the answers. But as an American and as a human, I’m grieving today. Mass shootings and gun violence have become so normalized in America that we are desensitized to these events. That’s a sad fact. I don’t know where we go from here, but today I couldn’t bring myself to talk Xs and Os. Kyler Murray and the other Texas native’s reaction to the latest mass shooting in America and their words should ring louder than anything else in the NFL world.
- As Chicagoans, we also suffered another tragedy from gun violence this weekend. Early Saturday morning, 24-year-old Areanah Preston was shot and killed in her backyard after returning home from her shift at the Chicago Police Department.
- Areanah was on the force for three years and was set to graduate from Loyola with a master’s degree next week. Instead, she’s the latest in a troubling list of lives lost too soon to gun violence in Chicago.
- We’ll get back to football in this space tomorrow. As for today, let’s remember the victims of senseless gun violence this weekend and hug our loved ones.
