Arthur Greene
Tuesday’s mass school shooting which left 19 children and two teachers dead – America’s worst since 2012 – has stoked the flames of the country’s ferocious debate about gun control.
During a press conference held on Wednesday in the aftermath of the shooting, Texas Governor Greg Abbott was dramatically interrupted by his political counterpart, Beto O’Rourke.
After Abbott said the massacre was caused by mental health problems in the community, the Democrat running for governor took grievance, standing up at the front of the audience and telling him “It’s on you.”
O’Rourke confronted Abbott over his gun-toting politics, arguing that his and other politicians’ opposition to gun control is what leads to mass shootings, not communities’ poor mental health.
“This is totally predictable when you choose not to do anything,” O’Rourke can be heard saying while the Uvalde mayor Don McLaughlin called him “sick son of a bitch.”
How the massacre happened
On Tuesday morning, 18-year-old Salvador Ramos drove fast and recklessly over to Robb Elementary School, crashing his car into a ditch.
Armed with a handgun and an assault rifle, Ramos began shooting at the bystanders who approached him for help.
A video caught by one onlooker shows Ramos running into the school building through a sidedoor.
He then locked himself into a fourth-grade classroom, barricaded the door, and prepared himself for a shootout with the police.
But he proceeded to shoot the children and teachers locked in the class with him. The bodies of all 21 victims were discovered in that classroom.
Among the victims was 10-year-old Amerie Jo Garza, who was shot dead by Ramos as she tried to dial 911 to call for help for her classmates.
Amerie was a star student who had spent her morning celebrating her appointment to the honour roll, her family told the Daily Beast.
The massacre was brought to an end about an hour after Ramos entered the school, when responding officers breached the classroom and shot him in the head, killing him.
Video source: @therecount
Image source: @NoLieWithBTC
