At least seventeen people were killed, and more than fifteen left wounded, after the latest U.S. mass shooting took place at high school in south Florida on Wednesday.
While police say they have a single suspect in custody—identified as Nikolas Cruz, a former student of the school where the massacre took place—gun control advocates reacted to the latest horrific incident by declaring once more that only legislative action, backed by a popular demand by those sick and tired of such violence, will put an end to the carnage that has now become so numbingly common in American society.
“We should never accept these horrific acts of violence as routine,” declared Giffords Courage to End Gun Violence, the advocacy group founded by former Democratic congresswoman Gabbie Giffords. “And we must never stop demanding that our leaders not only acknowledge this devastating problem, but take long overdue action to keep our children safe.”
“No more moments of silence. No more #,” added Women Against Gun Violence, which also said that only strong anti-gun legislation can curb such senseless violence.
Meanwhile, putting Wednesday’s shooting in the larger context, the Gun Violence Archive released its latest set of figures detailing the astronomically high rate of gun violence in the U.S.: