When people think of terrorism, Al-Qaeda or Osama Binladin usually come to mind, although, the majority of America’s terrorists have come from within this country.
According to the Washington Post, since the 1970s there have been 2,608 domestic terrorist attacks resulting in 226 deaths in the United States. Why is it that no one puts an emphasis on why they happen or how to prevent them?
Domestic terrorists such as Weather Underground, who bombed the U.S. State Department of Washington D.C., and Eric Robert Rudolph, responsible for 1996’s Atlanta bombing of an abortion clinic, are not even discussed today. I strongly believe that these same historical acts of domestic terrorism influence present day terrorist acts.
Surprisingly, the amount of domestic terrorism has declined since Sept. 11, but there have been detrimental events that have occurred between the years of 2001 and 2012, one of which being in my home state, Connecticut.
Everyone remembers Sept. 11, due to the amount of people it affected, but does anyone know the date of the Columbine? How often does the country reference the 1995 Oklahoma bombing that killed 168 citizens?
Not saying that Sept. 11 is not a monumental event, but there are plenty of terrorist attacks that took place on American soil by Americans, and they are constantly over looked.
Everyone’s death will not be recognized, but tragedies that impact the lives of citizens should receive the same attention. Personally, I believe no one stresses the significance of the lives lost, further than the day the tragedy actually takes place. Unfortunately, when acts of terror are committed in America by Americans, the offender(s) supposedly has some sort of mental illness that labels them unstable.
Of course government officials have to make a statement to ensure the people that justice will be served. However, I believe citizens just want something to talk about. You do not hear much protest about protecting our people from our people.
Claiming mental instability is the reason for hundreds of deaths is not acceptable. It is an excuse to provide the country with some understanding for why something happened.
According to the Washington Times, Sandy Hook killer Lanza was diagnosed with a mental illness. Studies show that he only wanted to compete with the amount of deaths in Virginia Tech’s shooting, as well as the bombing in Norway that was responsible for 77 deaths.
Yes, stricter gun laws have been implemented, but laws differ from state to state. When states such as Florida have a stand your ground law, it opens opportunities for those who purchase weapons to fire freely claiming self-defense. Oct. 1 is when the Firearms Safety Act will be in affect, but CBS Baltimore reports that the sales of guns have sky rocketed as the deadline approaches.
One must seriously consider a solution for the people who already have guns legally and illegally. Even if laws are stricter, mass killers plan their attacks strategically so there would be no reason to deem them suspicious.
In a poll done by The Washington Post, nearly 50 of the domestic terrorists involved in mass shooting bought their gun legally. Which led to the conclusion that the United States has had 15 out of the 25 most deadly shootings in the world.
Some things are out of our control, but the excuses have to stop and homage has to be paid. Sept. 11 was not the only detrimental attack against our country. Our country has been attacked prior and our country has not upheld its responsibility, to recognize those who lost their lives unwillingly from the actions of our own citizens.
—Email Meagan at [email protected] and follow her on Twitter @msjordan11
- Meagan Jordan, Opinions Editor