“You cannot blame anyone, because I want you to continue to believe in this country, believe in our elected officials, and most of all, stay together.”

–Herschel Walker in his concession speech, Dec. 6, 2022

I’m writing this on the 81st anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor. It’s especially meaningful to me, because my father was a survivor of that attack and went on to serve on destroyer escorts throughout the Pacific. When he died, fellow survivors from all over California came to his funeral, dressed in aloha shirts and plumeria leis to honor their Navy brother. They understood courage and service, never forgot the 2,403 Americans who died in that attack, and never lost sight of what they fought for: each other, the Constitution, and everyone privileged to live under its protection.

My father would be shocked at the way Americans have taken up arms against one another in the 22 years since he died. Gun violence claimed over 17,000 souls just this year–8 times the number of deaths at Pearl Harbor. How has killing of Americans by Americans become “normal”? Doesn’t it demand a moral reckoning and decisive action? Isn’t the life of an American as precious now as it was in 1941?

Mass shootings account for a relatively small number of gun deaths in America, but armed vigilantism is robbing us all of our sense of freedom and security. It isn’t an accident that we’re closing in on 600 mass shootings in 2022. Arms merchants who profit from Second Amendment absolutism have partnered with powerful politicians and right-wing media that traffic in rage and fear of “the other.” Together, they foment fear of immigrants and minority groups and rage against government. They inflame the disease, then sell the “cure”: more guns. The result is domestic terrorism rebranded as patriotism.

Last month’s Club Q attack illustrates some of the broader history of domestic terrorism and vigilantism. As “out groups” win legal protections and equal rights, those who disapprove of this expansion of democracy turn toward the use of force. Until protests began against police brutality and arrests in clubs and bars in the late ’60s and early ’70s, being gay was a criminal offense, discrimination in housing and employment was allowed, and “gay-bashing” went unpunished. The effect, as with racial discrimination, was to keep this community segregated, isolated, and afraid. Now, because discriminatory laws are no longer on their side, right-wing radicals have resorted to conspiracy theories to fuel hostility and justify aggression: LGBTQ+ people are dangerous. They are pedophiles and “groomers” who try to recruit children into the “gay lifestyle.” Incidents of violent attacks and armed intimidation are again becoming common across the country.

The prevailing lie in New Hampshire is that children are being forced into gender affirming medical procedures so they can win athletic competitions. This is rubbish. The requirements of medical ethics would never allow it, and there isn’t a shred of evidence that transgender athletes are hogging the medals. In truth, the “gay agenda” is nothing more than demanding the rights straight white males have enjoyed in America for 230-some years. We are relieved that the Respect for Marriage Act, which protects families like mine from state-sponsored discrimination, is now law. But we also know that it will be used to inflame fear and outrage, and encourage violence.

We can no longer call ourselves free when even our First Amendment right to peacefully assemble in parks, stores, schools, clubs, meetings, and even churches is under attack. To win back our freedom from violence and intimidation, we must first face facts: gun violence is horrible, but no longer shocking; it’s a daily occurrence; this is who we have become. The answer is not more guns; if it were, America would be the safest nation, not the most dangerous. The “good guy with a gun” rarely comes to the rescue. He’s much more likely to be an undisciplined guy with a savior complex and radically bigoted ideas about who is dangerous. In fact, the real-life good guys of the Club Q attack were an unarmed dad with extensive military experience and the love of a parent for his child and her friends; and a fierce drag queen armed with a good pair of stiletto heels.

Second, we must stop with the “thoughts and prayers,” lame excuses, and twisted logic after every massacre that only produce inaction. Gun violence happens for a host of reasons that need to be addressed, but there is only one common factor: the proliferation of ever deadlier weapons. We don’t have to remain this violent nation, grieving these terrible losses. We must, through determined civil and political action, demand life-saving regulations and policies.

Finally, whether we’d have voted for Herschel Walker or not, we can take his gracious and healing words to heart: inoculate ourselves against the poison of hate and division. Blame is a sales pitch, not a solution to our common problems. Solutions require careful thought and a commitment to get out in the world and meet the people we’re being told to fear. We honor those who have served not by turning violently against each other, but by turning toward each other in our common desire for peace and freedom.

Jean Lewandowski is a resident of Nashua.

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