“I am 11 years out in this journey, and I don’t think it gets easier, but the pain isn’t as sharp as it once was,” Deborah Parker said.
Parker is referring to her 19-year-old daughter Lindsay Key’s death in 2006. Lindsay was gunned down in a drive-by shooting in Chandler, Arizona.
Lindsay Key. Photo credit- Palm Beach Post
“I won’t use the term ‘lost’ when referring to victims of gun violence. ‘Taken’ is more appropriate because we haven’t misplaced those people, they have been shot dead in a very violent manner,” Parker stated.
Parker attended the Who Will Be Next memorial held at the UA mall on April 19, 2018. The event was a memorial for the victims of the next mass shooting. Survivors of gun violence, activists, and artists created the event. Guest speakers included City Councilman Steve Kozachik, survivors, and students.
Deborah Parker at the memorial with her granddaughter. Photo credit- Daniel Hud
“I love seeing the protests because the kids are re-energizing it. Some of us who have been doing this for a long time have worked hard for many years paving the way. It just gives me hope and makes me feel that we can do something about this,” Parker said.
Parker is happy that people are finding their voice but acknowledges that awareness and activism come only in the aftermath of violence.
Her advice to the survivors of the recent shootings is to turn to family and friends for support. Survivor networks are also helpful in providing counseling and support for those affected by gun violence.
Parker is a member of Moms Demand Action and Every Town for Gun Safety, organizations that provide support to survivors, call for change, and advocate for responsible gun control and legislature.
She wants to see changes in national policies including background checks for all gun sales and implementation of red flag laws. Red flag laws would make it possible for family members or law enforcement to temporarily restrict an individual’s access to firearms.
Parker would also like to see the “boyfriend loophole” closed. The boyfriend loophole refers to when a convicted domestic abuser is in a dating relationship. The abused in a non-marital dating relationship cannot petition for their partner’s firearm rights to be restricted. Those who are married or have a child together can have the abuser’s firearms taken away for safety.
“If they are just dating partners, then the guns will not be taken away. Society has changed now where it is not uncommon for people to live together and that needs to be taken care of as far as a safety issue,” Parker said.
Parker is also concerned about the influence of the NRA on politics.
“You need to keep in mind that the NRA does not speak for people with guns. The NRA speaks for the administration of the NRA and the gun manufacturers,” Parker stated.
She is adamant that every citizen needs to take an active part in local and national politics and get involved in their community by registering to vote and then actually voting when elections roll around.
Parker referenced data in making her point about the NRA’s political influence.
“Only 40% of people in the United States are around guns. 30% own guns. So that means 70% of us do not own firearms. The fact that the NRA’s money has bought our politicians whom only represent the minority is just not right,” she stated.
“We wanted to provoke a conversation around the fact that we are all potential victims of gun violence until we challenge the culture of violence in our society,” Martin Krafft said.
Photo Credit- Martin Krafft
Krafft was the organizer of the Who Will Be Next Memorial. He is a graduate student (M.F.A) at UA and the vice president of the Alternative to Violence Program.
“We wanted to create both a space for remembering how Tucson and UA have been affected by gun violence, and also a space to come together as a community and think about how we want to do things in the future,” Krafft said.
He found the event very collaborative and wanted to emphasize the level of support he received from organizations and individuals while putting together the memorial. Mom’s Demand Action, March for Our Lives Tucson, and survivors all over the nation were involved.
Who Will Be Next Memorial. Photo credit- Daniel Hud
Krafft’s advises future organizers to listen to the survivors of gun violence, and also people of color who face gun violence on a regular basis while creating their event.
“Gun violence is something that I take very personally. Every time I hear the stories and see the news about who is being affected by gun violence, it makes me feel connected to them,” said Vivian Reynoso, “Especially so with the Parkland shootings because they were students just like me, getting up early and going to school just like me.”
Reynoso is 17-years-old and a junior Tucson High. When she heard about the memorial, she wanted to get involved.
“In my opinion, it’s just the right thing to do. Innocent lives are being taken – the right thing to do is to do something about it,” Reynoso stated.
Reynoso hopes that changes will be made in Arizona legislation to control guns more efficiently. She also believes that changing gun culture is critical and believes that events like the memorial will help achieve that.
Reynoso and other high school students participated in organizing the Tucson March for Our Lives earlier in the year. She is excited to get more involved in politics and to learn more and help any way she can.
“I think the change we had been hoping for is already here. To see young people taking the lead has been the most inspiring thing we have seen in a long time,” said Lisa Kiser.
Lisa Kiser. Photo credit- UA School of Nursing
Lisa Kiser is a clinical instructor at the UA School of Nursing. She witnessed a classmate open fire at UA in 2002. UA professors Barbara Monroe, Robin Rodgers, and Cheryl McGaffic were killed. The gunman later committed suicide.
Barbara Monroe. Photo credit- UA News
Robin Rodgers. Photo credit- UA News
Cheryl McGaffic. Photo credit- UA News
Kiser is particularly concerned with the violence directed at women and minorities. She believes anti-women and racist rhetoric is an increasingly dangerous problem and guns are enabling this hate to become even more violent.
“Misogyny has gone viral. The problem with the media and the digital age is that people who are susceptible and easily swayed are creating this reality that you can take your personal frustrations and target women,” Kiser said bringing up the Toronto and Santa Barbara attacks as an example.
“When you look at the national conversation that going on about women we need to give more attention to the fact that gun violence is a women’s issue,” Kiser stated.
Kiser went on to mention that the number one underreported story about gun violence is that the police are killing many women of color, but they do not get the same news coverage that black men do.
“So, to be a person of color, to be female- the presence of a gun makes those prejudices deadly,” Kiser said, “We have to disarm hate.”
Kiser wants to see nationwide universal background checks for gun owners, a mental health registry, and the red flag law implemented.
“Prior to every single major shooting that you have seen in the last year people knew that there were concerns. But there was no legal way to go into this person’s home and say, ‘We are taking away your guns for three days while we decide whether you are a threat to yourself or others,’” Kiser said.
Kiser brought up the movement against drunk driving as an example of how policies can make society safer.
“It was never about taking alcohol away. How alcohol is sold is controlled, you have to have a license to drive, and if you drink and drive irresponsibly, we take your license away. But nobody sees those things thirty years later as their rights being infringed,” Kiser said.
“Drunk driving didn’t go away. There still is drunk driving, and there still are drunk driving deaths, but the rate just dropped so dramatically, and we were able to identify people who were drinking inappropriately as well as the people who were serving alcohol inappropriately,” Kiser said.
Kiser and many others including the American Medical Association and the American Nurses Association believe gun violence is a public health issue, but because it has become so politicized little is being done to curb it.
“It was true around AIDS and women’s reproductive rights. There are certain health issues that become deeply politicized. And when healthcare becomes politicized people suffer,” Kiser stated, “We need to get motivated to change our society. I look forward to the day when we won’t have memorials.”
Kiser’s message to survivors, family, and friends of recent shootings is straightforward: “We are working today so that what happened to you does not happen to somebody else. That is the only answer that makes any sense.”