When Tom Mauser is asked what he thinks about the passage of time – a quarter of a century has passed since the Columbine shooting – the father takes a moment to think.
“It’s hard to find the words,” he said. It never goes away. But it gets a little easier with time. A little easier. »
On April 20, 1999, her 15-year-old son, Daniel, a bright student who excelled in math and who was returning from an exchange trip to France, left for Columbine High School and never returned home. House.
Despite the shock of losing his son to 12 other victims in a shooting by two assassins that day, Tom Mauser finds comfort in continuing to speak out about Daniel and fight for stricter laws on gun control.
PHOTO MICHAEL S. GREEN, ARCHIVES ASSOCIATED PRESS
Tom Mauser at a huge gun control demonstration in Denver in May 1999, a few days after the Columbine shootings
“I receive messages from young people who tell me that they are touched by Daniel’s story. People who weren’t even born at the time of the shooting. That’s what gives me hope. »
In the United States, mass shootings have not followed an encouraging trajectory in recent decades. Between 1995 and 1999, there were 15 killings. During the period from 2015 to 2019, 33 of these killings took place.
Tom Mauser is not surprised. Gun control laws have barely changed during this period in the United States.
With the political divide, the file has not moved. Everyone is stuck to their positions, so it’s been difficult to make gains. And without gains, we are not tackling the accessibility of weapons, which is at the source of the problem.
Tom Mauser
Result: the situation in schools is still tense. This month, a Pew Research survey found that one in four teachers in the United States experienced a gun-related confinement at school during the last school year.
Additionally, 59% of teachers say they are “worried” about the possibility of a shooting at their school, while 31% say they are not worried.
PHOTO ERIC GAY, ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES
Rally for victims of the Columbine shootings, in Littleton, Colorado, in April 1999
Tom Mauser sees things more positively. This is because in recent years, progress has been made.
” The times have changed “
Two years ago, the first major federal gun control law passed Congress. The law imposes stricter controls on young buyers and encourages states to take guns away from people considered a threat.
“And it was a bipartisan effort,” Mr. Mauser said.
PHOTO ERIC GAY, ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES
A man mourns in front of Robb Elementary School, in Uvalde, Texas, where 19 children and 2 teachers were killed in May 2022.
What was the decisive point was the killings in Uvalde, Texas, where 19 children and 2 teachers were massacred by an assassin in May 2022. “After that, the elected officials finally moved. »
In Colorado, things progressed even more quickly. This year, 10 gun control bills will be introduced.
“It wasn’t that long ago that Democrats were telling us that two or three bills a year was the most they could do because they were getting too much criticism. This year, it’s ten! Not all of them will be adopted, but if four or five are, that would already be huge. The recent gains are exceptional. »
The difference is that Colorado has gone from a solidly Republican state in the 1990s to a solidly Democratic state today. “Republicans in Colorado are very, very right-wing and do not represent a large portion of the population. »
Tom Mauser was in Washington this week when The Press spoke to him. He was there to participate in a demonstration in front of the offices of the pro-gun lobby National Rifle Association (NRA), as well as to meet officials from the brand new White House office for the prevention of gun violence. An achievement that gives hope, he says.
“When George W. Bush was elected in 2000, the NRA said it would have its own office in the White House. Today, violence prevention has its office in the White House. The times have changed. »