On Feb. 14, a mass shooting at a high school in Florida resulted in the deaths of 17 people, while many others were injured. This was one of the worst school shootings in recent American history, and reignited debate regarding gun laws in the United States.
Immediately afterwards, U.S. President Donald Trump addressed the people of the United States about the mass shooting. The debate over gun control has been a recurring theme in his presidency, with many groups calling for stricter gun laws. Trump is in a privileged position to make change. And yet again, he deflected the issue of stricter gun legislation.
Instead, he made this mass shooting about mental health. He stated that the American government is committed to tackling “the difficult issue of mental health.” This opinion piece is not in any way undermining the role that stricter gun laws could have played in preventing this shooting. And this piece will be addressing stricter gun laws later on. But first, let’s look at what his government has done to address mental health issues in the United States.
This past year, he introduced the American Health Care Act of 2017, which amended much of the progressive Affordable Health Care Act. His government lowered reimbursements for states to fund mental health programs, as well as making it less accessible for the poor to access these programs.
Mental Health America, a leading non-profit organization that deals with mental health support and advocacy, compiled data in a 2017 report that ranked states on various factors of mental health and mental healthcare. Florida was in the bottom third in virtually all the categories, being rated 44th in gaining access to mental health care. And nearly 67 per cent of youth did not receive adequate mental health treatment in Florida.
These federal reimbursements help by providing services such as public mental health centers, which can remove financial barriers for citizens. So, when Trump states that he is committed to addressing the issue of mental health, his Health Care Act has instead made it more challenging for Floridians to access these resources.
Back to the mass shooting. President Trump, why is it harder to access mental health resources than it is to purchase a semi-automatic weapon?
The Giffords Law Centre to Prevent Gun Violence is one of the nation’s leading advocates for gun control and looks at how federal, state, and local officials can improve on having stronger and safer gun laws. The centre also rates each state on its gun laws, using factors that include licensing laws and policies regarding consumer safety.
The state of Florida was given a failing grade.
In Florida, there are no background checks on purchasing guns in private sales. When purchasing a semi-automatic weapon, there is no need for licences, and it also has no waiting period. And in 2011, Florida enacted a measure which severely restricts local authorities from regulating firearms, whereby they can be punished for going against the Florida constitution.
Correlating mental illness with mass shootings is not only dangerous—it’s extremely irresponsible. Not only did Trump not make a big mention of having stricter gun laws in his speech, but he turned this into a mental health issue. With mental health treatment being hard to access already in the U.S., he has now stigmatized mental health even more by associating it with mass shootings. Yes, the mental health system needs improvement in the United States. But, having stricter gun laws that have conditions such as background checks and licenses is the main way to prevent these mass shootings.
I am tired of hearing that mental illness is the main cause of these tragedies. It’s just another cop-out from Trump.
Photo by Meagan Casalino
