2019-08-10_The_Week_Junior_UK

O

nthe weekend of3–4August, at least 31 people

died in two gun attacksinthe US. The shootings

took placeinElPaso,inTexas and Dayton, in Ohio.

Tributes have poured in for the victims.

Whathappened?

On3August,aman armed withagun attacked

asupermarket in the city of ElPaso,Texas. In all,

22 people died and at least another 24 wereinjured.

The policearrested the gunman in thecarpark.

Then, in theearly hours of the morning of4August,

another man withagun attacked people on

the streets in Dayton, Ohio.Nine people

died and 27 wereleft injured.Police

shot the gunman and he died

withinaminute of starting

his attack.

Whowere the victims?

The attacker in ElPaso appears

to have targeted Hispanic

people (people whosefamilies

come from Spanish-speaking

countries inCentral and South

America) who lived in the city or who

werevisiting from Mexico. El Paso is on the US-

Mexican border.InDayton, policeare still trying

to work out the motive for the shooting.

Howdid peoplereact?

In ElPaso,blood bankshad to turn people away

because so many people turned up to donate. In

Dayton, people gathered wherethe attack took

placefor asilent vigil. They sang songs and laid

flowers for the victims.Ahashtag, #ElPasoStrong,

started trending onTwitter.Many Americans have

demanded that the government takes action.

Howdid President

Trump react?

US president, DonaldTrump,

responded to the shootings by

saying that “hate has no place”

in the US and that moreneeds

to be done to stop gun violence

in thecountry.However,many

people have criticisedTrump.

They say hiscomments about non-

white Americans have helped to create

an atmosphereofhate in thecountry.

Trumpwasdue to visit ElPaso and Dayton

on 7August. Some people, including politician

VeronicaEscobar whorepresents ElPaso,have

protested againstTrump’svisit and said that they

don’twant him there.

Why do people in the US haveguns?

The USConstitution states that US citizens have the

right to own guns.Aconstitution isaset of rules on

whichacountry bases its laws. The US is made up

of 50 states, and laws around gun ownership are

different depending oneach state. Some peoplewant

stricter gun laws; others believe that the right to own

guns should be protected.

Willgun lawschange in thecountry?

On5August,Trump suggestedalaw to ban the

sale of guns tocertain people. He alsocalled for

law-enforcement agencies to do moretoidentify

and stop possible attackers.YetTrump has previously

blocked attempts to makegun laws stricter.There

areproposals to tighten gun laws going through

Congress (which is likeParliament in the UK), but

politicians fromTrump’sRepublicanParty have been

blockingavote on them.

LOCA

LHERO

GlenOakle

yfromE

lPaso,

Texas has been

calledah

ero

after he

carriedc

hildren

tosafety during

theshooting.

The Week Junior•10 August 2019

Callsforstrictergunlaws

intheUSaftershootings

2

Campaignerswant

changes to gun laws.

If you’refeeling worried or

upset by what you’veread or

seen in the news, talk to your

parents or another adult you

trust.Talking about it will make

youfeel better.Itisworth

remembering that events like

this areshocking because they

happen sorarely.Remember

that sincethe attacks, lots of

people have acted with great

bravery,kindness and love.

Formoretips and advice, visit

theweekjunior.co.uk/advice

u’re

ry

Memorialsforthe

victims in ElPaso.

What to do ifyou

upsetby this stor