Today, Kansas City stands in mourning, not just for one, but two horrifying events: the tragedies of the Super Bowl Massacre, and the Super Bowl Parade Mass Shooting.
We mourn the tens of thousands of Palestinians who continue to undergo active genocide funded directly by our tax dollars. In fact, while many of us in our city cheered ignorantly engrossed in a game, israel carried out an apocalyptic, calculated massacre killing over one hundred Palestinians––half of whom were children––during the Super Bowl match itself (the NFL even ran an advertisement endorsing the genocide).
Now over 28,000 Palestinians have been systematically murdered in a mass assassination factory, while over 1 million remain in a concentration camp awaiting their deaths.
Every single one of their lives deserves our grief, our horror and our outrage – if not for the base level fact of their humanity, let it be for directly funding the mass murder of over 14,000 children in just 5 months.
During the Super Bowl match itself, the number of Palestinians killed was 100 times greater than the casualties of yesterday’s mass shooting. This stark contrast in casualties received little local attention, while the latter tragedy garnered international headlines. My intention is not to downplay the profound tragedy that unfolded in our city, but to urge us to broaden our empathy, applying the same depth of compassion we have for our local victims to those suffering in distant lands.
Local Losses Deepen Our Grief
Our grief is also profound for our local victims, particularly the family of Lisa Lopez Galvin, whose bright spirit was extinguished far too soon, and for all those in our city whose lives have been irrevocably altered by the violence of the Super Bowl Parade Mass Shooting.
What was meant to be a celebration of unity for a city that is deeply divided, instead became a series of unthinkable tragedies, and somber testament to the fragility of life and the pervasive shadow of violence that looms over us.
Some might argue that now is not the time to address such wide-ranging or “political” issues. Yet, we assert that the people of Kansas City are more than capable of extending our empathy, compassion, and humanity to confront multiple injustices simultaneously.
A Closer Look at the Root Causes
In the wake of Kansas City’s dual tragedies, the revelation that the shooter may have been a Black teen introduces a complex layer of heartache and concern.
Such an assertion, true or not, risks exacerbating the already perilous narrative surrounding Black youth in our city, further entrenching them in surveillance, criminalization and suspicion by the KCPD.
This cycle of criminalization not only undermines the safety and dignity of Black communities but also diverts attention from the root causes of such violence: racial capitalism, our city’s ongoing apartheid and inadequately addressed gun control laws.
How Gun Worship & Right-Wing Extremism Lead to Dangerously Lax Gun Laws
Our country’s lax approach to gun regulation bears a significant share of the blame for these tragedies. The ease with which firearms can be obtained and carried, often with minimal oversight, lays the groundwork for such devastating outcomes.
In Missouri, for instance, one needs no permit of any sort in order to legally purchase and carry a long gun. There is no minimum age to get a gun and no identification required either. You also don’t need a license for concealed carry.
It is a stark reminder that these are not isolated incidents but the result of a collective failure to enact laws that prioritize the safety of our communities over the interests of extremist, fascist gun lobbies.
The fact that a celebration of unity and achievement could be so swiftly turned into a scene of sorrow and loss underscores the urgent need for such reforms.
As we mourn those we’ve lost, including Lisa Lopez Galvin and the thousands of martyrs is Palestine, we must also confront the reality that these tragedies are preventable. They stem from a shared global failure to protect the most vulnerable among us, whether through the neglect of gun control laws at home or our active participation in the genocides abroad.
The violence that shattered our local celebration and the violence that devastates communities worldwide are reflections of the same disregard for human life.
Preventable Tragedies: A Call to Action
As we reflect on these events, let us channel our grief into action. Let us advocate for policies and changes that can prevent future tragedies and work towards a society where the lives of all individuals, especially the youth, are valued and protected.
Let us also extend our empathy beyond our borders, recognizing that the fight against injustice is a global one.
In the memory of those lost, both in Kansas City and around the world, we must strive for a future where such tragedies are not merely mourned but prevented.
