Neighbor Tuesday: Gun violence
I was going to do another post today but decided to go a different route and hold space for what happened at UNC yesterday. I went to UNC for my PhD and it is right down the road from me. A few hours before the shooting, I was on a zoom call with colleagues and students at UNC. I have loved and still love that place. In many ways, it has paved so much of the way for me.
And, still.
There was a tragedy yesterday that could have been avoided. I’ve written more on my thoughts on gun violence here. For today though, I want to hold space for people affected by the shootings that happened around the country this week.
And, remind all of us that are not affected near as much that we can do something as neighbors.
We can pray, for sure.
We can also vote.
We can advocate and march and stand side-by-side with others for stricter and more love-thy-neighbor laws.
We can educate ourselves on how our voting matters, particularly as we enter the 2024 election year. I think this is needed the most for evangelicals who see this issue as only one way, rather than approaching the subject with humility and re-learning what needs to be re-learned.
We can be neighbors to our own neighbors and our children who have to learn active shooter drills. This is not normal nor should it be normalized.
We can pray and move with faith becoming action.
-Emily
Vote. Encourage your friends to vote. Ask your neighbors to vote. Tell your kids about the importance of voting as soon as they are old enough. If you want to do more help your local organizations that are registering people to vote. This is the ultimate solution to achieve the will of the people.
My CPE year was at UNC Hospitals. I loved it there. Yesterday made me feel so strange. I can picture
the campus and the medical center. It's right there in the middle of everything as your know. I took Lisa to a basketball game and to 411 West for our first date. She had been a Tar Heel fan for years but had never been to Chapel Hill. I loved serving there and had a great learning experience. I still have friends there. Something needs to change.