‘Spend 15 minutes in lockdown’: Two NC teachers on gun violence

Welcome to NC Voices, where leaders, readers and experts from across North Carolina can speak on issues affecting our communities. Send submissions of 350 words or fewer to opinion@charlotteobserver.com.

Senators, feel the fear that kids do

I spent 45 years in classrooms in Stanley, N.C., New York City, and mostly Charlotte. I’ve seen lots of changes in the world and in schools, but the most disturbing shift has happened since the Sandy Hook massacre.

Since that dark day, schools have been searching for ways to keep our children safe but the Uvalde tragedy has demonstrated how futile that effort can be.

I’ve been through many lock-down drills, herding my kindergartners into a dark resource room, curtains drawn, doors locked, trying our best to keep quiet not knowing if we were hiding from the madness of a man with a weapon of war.

Explaining to 5-year-olds why it might be important for them to hide in the dark was impossible, for we couldn’t understand it ourselves.

With this latest dark chapter, voices are calling to “harden” the schools, put armed guards at every school, and arm teachers — the most asinine suggestion of all.

Some of those calling for teachers to be armed are the same people who say books in our school libraries will indoctrinate children. They want to ban the unpleasant pieces of our history for fear it might make some children uncomfortable.

I speak from experience. Those books and lessons are not the boogie men these folks imagine. The monster that will keep our children awake at night is the idea that someone will come into their sanctuary of school with destruction and death in his heart.

Our senators are supposed to be our voice, speaking for the people of our country. That includes our children. They have a grave responsibility to protect them.

What can they do? Raise the age to buy guns to 21. Require licensing of all guns. Impose a tax for gun ownership, and use that money for gun safety education before anyone can own a gun. And if it costs them their seat? That’s a small price to pay for the lives of those slaughtered by the plethora of guns in America.

Finally, I propose that every senator spend 15 minutes in lockdown with a class of terrified kindergarten children who are huddling in a dark room, afraid to whisper, fearful of being found by someone who may take out his anger on innocent people. You will be able to taste the fear in that space.

Linda Minor, Charlotte

The harsh reality that teachers face

The writer teaches grades 6–12 in the HOPE Alternative program in Tarboro.

I cannot speak for every public school teacher in America, but I have a feeling that the conclusion I came to after the deadly shootings in Uvalde lies heavy in the hearts and minds of many of us.

Every time something like this happens, we make a conscious commitment to walk into our jobs the next day willing to die to protect our students. That’s the harsh reality of what it means to teach in America.

Our students likewise are not ignorant. They know that being a victim of gun violence is a real possibility, that tragedies like Uvalde happen, even with the best safety measures in place.

I fear that I failed my students the day after the Uvalde shooting. That would’ve been the day to explicitly tell them how much we love them, to let them know that we would do anything to protect them and make them feel safe. But I said nothing. I bowed my head in a moment of silence and got down to playing my part in the machine that is state-mandated testing.

The fact of the matter is that American culture is changing. Our nation is becoming increasingly violent, and as the hearts of the people change, so should the laws that govern them. We must call on our legislators to act.

We Americans have the right to protect ourselves, but I don’t believe that means we should have access to weapons of war.

We need common-sense gun regulations and systems of support for our school communities.

To mitigate the cause and effect of indiscriminate violence, we need to address head-on the trauma and stress that impacts our students’ mental and physical health.

This is a complex issue, but I believe that it is one that we as a nation must grapple with, come to reasonable conclusions about, and act on quickly.

I cannot speak for all teachers, but I plan to lead explicitly and out loud with love. Our lawmakers must do the same.

Crystal Lancaster, Rocky Mount