Following the mass shooting Wednesday at the Kansas City Chiefs championship celebration, politicians have reacted with sorrow and anger. And they have participated in a dialogue about why catastrophic shootings take place, and what can be done to prevent them.
Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas was at Union Station when the gunfire rang out. He says that while he believes people need to be taught more at a young age about how to handle conflict, the availability of assault weapons plays a crucial role in the violence.
"My thing is this: yes, we need to invest in particularly the lives of so many of our young boys in our cities. But the guns are also a problem. If there were not semi-automatic weapons, not that many people would have been hit. Full stop," Lucas said.
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson, who also was at the rally, says Missourians should not expect gun control measures any time soon. He believes that accessibility to guns is not the primary cause of the problem.
"What is the core root of people feeling it is okay to go out and kill people? That's not normal," Parson said. "There is an issue in our society today that I think, I don't have all the answers. If I did, I'd fix it tomorrow if I could. I think it's a bigger issue than just saying who buys guns and who doesn't buy guns."
According to the National Center for Health Statistics, the state of Missouri's firearm mortality rate ranks 9th in the country.
