A topic that we’ve seen too many times in the news are children who have fallen victims to gun violence and gun accidents.  After Sandy Hook, many American hoped that children would never be victims again to gun violence.

One tragic example that has been in the news recently is a young girl, Haley Moore, who accidentally shot herself in the chest. This tragic incident unfolded when Haley’s father, Eric Moore, was planning on taking her and her two other siblings to eat and then watch a movie. Her father took a shower when he heard a gunshot. Haley was playing with his handgun, which was left out on a table in their house. The Washington Post reports, “Moore told investigators that he had left his .45-caliber gun out on a table in the home.” The bullet entered her right chest and exited through her left arm. CPR was performed on her but that couldn’t save her, she was taken to the hospital where she died.

The Washington Post also reported that, “So far in 2016, at least 94 children, younger than 18, have picked up a firearm and accidentally shot themselves or someone else, according to data from Everytown for Gun Safety, a gun control group funded by former New York city Mayor Michael Bloomberg.” These rates should not be so high. In these cases these accidents can be prevented by simple educational talks and actual safety / storage of these guns.

Guns should always be locked away and out of the reach of children, guns should never be left unattended, locks should be put on guns for extra precaution. All of these safety measures should always be implemented when there are guns and children around, because children are of course very curious and love to play with things without most times realizing the danger.

At the end of the day, too many innocent children are dying from guns.  It has become clear after Sandy Hook, the Federal Government intends to do nothing about getting semiautomatic weapons out of Americans’ hands.  Parents and guardians need to secure their firearms and ammunition.  Children are our future, and priority, we need to keep them safe and protected.  Even if the government will not.