It is no secret that the United States has been struggling with the issue of school safety, and public safety in general, regarding firearm violence. Tragedy after tragedy has divided the US in on issues such as gun control, making it difficult to find any solace in the thoughtful action. Earlier this week Betsy DeVos, the chair of President Donald Turmp’s Federal Commission on School Safety made a few eyebrows go up regarding school safety and their priorities when addressing this issue. Additionally, the gaming community once again finds itself in the middle.
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DeVos recently took part in a Senate appropriations subcommittee meeting took to the stage to discuss budget options for the Department of Education. When asked about the role firearms play in relation to school violence, she responded with, “That is not part of the commission’s charge per se.” Keep in mind that directly violates what the Department of Education website claims with a snippet below courtesy of Polygon:
The exchange between Senator Patrick Leahy and DeVos continued:
“So you’re studying gun violence,” Leahy said, “but not considering the role of guns?” “We’re actually considering school safety,” DeVos countered, “and how we can ensure our students are safe at school.”
When asked about the relation of video games and social media with gun violence, DeVos responded with a resounding “no”:
“Are you looking at some of those countries where the students do just as much time on video games,” Leahy asked, “just as much time on social media as we do but do not have gun violence? Are you looking at those at all? That’s a yes or no question.”
“Not per se,” DeVos said.
The studies in question are expected to wrap up at the end of this year, with a budget proposed of $43 million for School Safety, which has decreased since 2017’s 68 million and 2018’s previously established total of 67.5 million.
As for the Commission in question, it was formulated in response to the Parkland, Florida shooting that resulted in 17 fatalities at the hands of a 19-year old gunman. Florida then responded with a proposal for the minimum gun purchase age to be raised from 18 to 21.
(Source: Senate Appropriations/Polygon)
