To the Journal editor:

We find ourselves at the intersection of two tragedies: the mass shooting at our beloved Michigan State University last Monday, where three students were killed, five critically injured and an entire university traumatized, and the fifth anniversary of the horrific massacre of 17 students and staff at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, in Parkland, Florida.

It doesn’t matter who we are or where we live – the epidemic of mass shootings — 71 in 2023 alone — affects all of us.

Five years ago, following the Parkland shooting, I attended a gun safety rally in Fort Lauderdale where I saw grief-stricken, angry students, parents and teachers speaking and carrying signs with messages and calls to action that resonate following the MSU shooting: “I should feel safe in school.” “The right to bear arms is not more important than a child’s right to grow up.” “We don’t need thoughts and prayers — we need policy and change.” “How many more?”

In midst of this ongoing terror, death and grief, too many of our leaders can’t summon the moral courage and political will to do what is necessary to protect our children and communities. This, shamefully, includes our representative in Michigan’s 1st Congressional District. The absurdity of political leaders who claim to be “pro-life” but refuse to engage in serious discussion about gun-control legislation that will allow us to live in a safer society must be called out.

At this point, we’re all in harm’s way. It doesn’t matter if you’re a student or teacher at a K-12 school or university, a person shopping for groceries or someone visiting your house of worship. We can’t continue to live like this.

Our country leads the world in mass shootings. Countries, including Norway, New Zealand and the U.K., along with nine states, have successfully passed assault weapons bans and related laws. It’s encouraging to hear there is movement in Lansing on gun legislation that can help save lives.

Michiganders, regardless of political affiliation, should support these efforts. Marco Díaz-Munoz, the MSU professor whose class was the first targeted by the shooter and saw two students die and others injured, said, “If lawmakers saw what I saw, it would shame them into action.” We must insist that all of our members of Congress do something now to protect us from these horrific, preventable tragedies.