NRA to Make Its Next Santa Barbara Visit on June 7, Two Weeks After UCSB Shooting

 As a student of the University of California system any death among my colleagues is tragic. The senseless shooting spree that took place this weekend near UC Santa Barbara will no doubt inspire each student to hug their loved ones more as this Memorial Day will have a different meaning for all families touched by this tragedy.

The alleged shooter who caused this harm was seen on video websites detailing his diabolical plans for mass murder. No fame should be granted for a person who causes harm to people with cowardly instruments like a gun. There is no doubt that this event will reinvigorate a national discussion about gun control. However, unfortunately for the families of this horrific tragedy 2014 is an election year and legislating business will resume November 5^th when those on their way out can vote with their hearts and no longer worry about their reelection strategy.

On Saturday morning after perusing through the front pages of Reddit I was made aware of the shooting that happened as a speeding vehicle with weapons hanging out the window met the party scene that UCSB is legendary for. On Saturday morning Richard Martinez father of one of the slain victims, 20 year old Chris Martinez, gave a statement regarding the events that involved his son and called out the politicians and the National Rifle Association (NRA), partially placing the blame on the death of his son on the doorstep of the organization.

-- Why did Chris die? Chris died because of craven, irresponsible politicians and the NRA. They talk about gun rights. When will enough people say, Stop this madness! Too many have died. We should say to ourselves, Not one more! --

I was a student in high school in Pomona, Ca, that ranks high on homicide rates, when I attended my fourth funeral of a friend who died at the hands of a person wielding a gun and changing the course of history for someone that I cared for. It was also around this time that the mass shooting in Littleton, Colorado occurred and the nation came to care about gun violence and the death of young people after senseless gun violence came out of the ghettos of where I grew up and affected the affluent suburbs where defense manufacturers and their kids became targets.

Even after the bombastic barrage of bullets and explosives destroying the soul of Columbine High School in the 1990’s the NRA came to remind the residents of the area that guns didn’t harm people, the people holding the weapons did. The NRA also made the argument that Marilyn Manson and violent video games were culprits behind the murders not the accessibility to deadly weapons and the NRA’s fight to cut restrictions as a lobbying group that is the ultimate invisible hand of government. Inevitably the NRA will point out that the culprit also stabbed his roommates excluding their lives from the shooting tragedy and will be able to downplay the rest of the events where the shooter still had 400 unused rounds in his car to cause further harm.

So now we are here in Santa Barbara, or Isla Vista to be exact and six defenseless people are dead with many more injured as Friday night wrapped up. Almost serendipitously the NRA is on tour in California. On Saturday June 6, The Friends of NRA will be hosting an event at the Santa Barbara Elks Lodge on 150 N. Kellog Ave. I called John McCormack the chapters contact and he assured me that the event was still going to occur as scheduled. I asked if he felt whether or not the event would be hectic because of the horrible shooting that took place 4.5 miles away from the tragedy that occurred only hours ago. Mr. McCormick assured me that he expected the event to occur without trepidation. 

The Friends of the NRA are currently in San Diego and will be making their way through the San Joaquin Valley then the Central Coast raising funds for the mother ship by selling tickets to the event starting at $50. The tour stops will also help support lobbying efforts to make sure that the words of Richard Martinez, the father of murdered UCSB honors student Chris Martinez, resonants nothing in the halls of congress and Sacramento. The people of California and the nation now have another heuristic memory between gun violence, tragedy, and politics.

www.laprogressive.com

Luckily in an election year, the people can ask candidates running to represent them how they land when it comes to gun control. As hard as it is to look beyond this tragedy we should take this moment remind ourselves that next week we have an election. Every day before Tuesday June 3^rd , we Californians have the opportunity to make the decisions on who writes the laws on gun safety. Will the slain lives of gun victims tip the scale to the coffers 
of the gun rights organizations like the NRA?