Group places 7,000 pairs of shoes at Capitol to represent students killed since Sandy Hook

[DonViejo]

Source: The Hill




BY MORGAN GSTALTER - 03/13/18 11:41 AM EDT

Link to tweet

Thousands of pairs of shoes were placed on the lawn of the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, one for roughly each child who has been killed in school shootings since the 2012 Sandy Hook massacre, according to activist group Avaaz.

The group said in a statement that they collected 7,000 pairs of shoes for the memorial to bring “the heartbreak of gun violence to Congress’ doorstep.”

Shoes were donated by celebrities, family members of gun violence victims and American citizens from across the country.

Link to tweet

The memorial comes the day before the scheduled national student walkout to protest gun violence following the Parkland, Fla. high school shooting last month that killed 17 people.

Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/378115-7000-pairs-of-shoes-placed-at-us-capitol-to-honor-students

[JDC]

1. Great idea.

Unfortunately countered by the empty suits inside the Capitol.

[global1]

7. That Would Be A Fitting Memorial......

One empty suit per Congressperson and Senator spread out in front of the Capitol Bldging just like the shoes. Maybe even more telling than the shoes.

[bucolic_frolic]

2. Where are the Right to Lifers on this one?

Bringing life into a shoot and pollute world is crazy

[iluvtennis]

3. Wow, love it

[DetlefK]

4. Just compare the school-shooting statistics for Europe and the US:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/School_shooting

If you add up the last 20 years, 67 people were killed in school-shootings in Europe.

In 2018 alone (AND THE YEAR IS NOT EVEN OVER YET) 40 people were killed in school-shootings in the US.

[IrishEyes]

23. Yes, we are only in the third month of this year.

It is crazy.

[ffr]

5. K&R all day long for this one.

[Leghorn21]

6. K&R!!! nt

[Achilleaze]

8. In sorrow, with respect, and with a demand for common sense: outlaw assault weapons

[Canoe52]

12. Cue the gun definitionists...

In 3..2..1...

[LittleGirl]

9. I love this! thanks for sharing. eom

[ffr]

10. 96 on average

Link to tweet

Link to tweet

[Cha]

11. 7,000! How can that

be?!

[packman]

13. Not to argue - but, 7,000 deaths?

Where can one find that figure?

FOUND ARTICLE:

Nearly 1,300 children die every year after being shot, according to data published in June 2017 in the medical journal Pediatrics. Another 5,790 children are hurt, the researchers said.

[needledriver]

21. That depends on how you define children.

Yes, around 7,000 children a year are killed by gun violence. That is a horrific figure no matter how you break it down, but it doesn’t mean they were all killed in school shootings as the OP suggests.

Here’s a look at a breakdown of deaths by age group:

0-4 years: 247

5-9 years: 218

10-14 years: 847

15-19 years: 6,526

As you can see, the VAST majority of children killed by gun violence are mid to late teenagers who mostly likely have made some very bad life choices.

What is the point of conflating all child deaths by gun violence into “school shootings”?

The above breakdown of ages is from:
http://www.politifact.com/california/statements/2016/dec/27/jackie-speier/examining-claim-7-children-day-die-gun-violence/

[sinkingfeeling]

14. Hope it has a visual impact on the vile GOP.

[Lucky Luciano]

17. Get real. These kids made a sacrifice for our freedumbz or something.

That will be their rationale.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

18. More likely to have an impact on wobbly middle voters than the RepliConjobs. . . . nt

[gademocrat7]

15. K&R!

[ChazInAz]

16. Make it permanent!

Seven thousand bronze shoes, permanently installed around the Capitol.
A constant reminder, like the Shoe Monument on the banks of the Danube in Budapest.
Never forget! Never again!

[Upthevibe]

19. K & R...

[noneof_theabove]

24. and don't forget

the bronze empty suits for each "it's not time" congress-critter, by global1 in post #7

[Camaromjr]

20. Like the Holocaust Museum

Paint the shoes white and they would bear a striking resemblance to the shoes at the National Holocaust Museum. In its own way, this is becoming our own national horror.

[EX500rider]

22. I probably wouldn't call 17 to 19yo gang members shooting each other "children"

Since that's what most of those are.