"Native American Identity"

The article I read was about Native American identity. According to the author, Native people are choosing not to speak their native language and they are going to be like white people. Native American people would be taught their native language and some may not. Some participate in their tribal ways and some don’t. Some of them look native and some don’t. Native identity is not the same for everyone because some people are from different tribes and different communities and they have different ways.

I feel that Native American identity is different to some native American people because people don't want to learn the way of their tribes. Or they don't have people to teach them and learn. Like me, my connection to reading is that I did have that many people to teach me my language. And now I don't really speak my language but sometimes my grandpa would teach here and there about his way in his tribe. He would tell me to pay attention because I would be the one to follow in his steps to learn the ways.

Horse, Perry G. “Native American Identity,” Serving Native American Students. Wiley Periodicals Inc, 2005. Pp 61-68.

"America's Long History Of Gun Regulation"

In this article,”America’s long history of gun regulation” by Francis Wilkinson, Mr Wilkinson interviews a legal scholar and historian, Patrick J. Charles on gun regulation. The article focuses on the law and history of individual gun rights. Charles states that carrying a gun in public places was restricted in the 13th century to the late 20th century. But there is a loophole that allows for people to have unrestricted concealed carry or open carry (visible to the eye). Charles also stated that pro-gun people want to reset the second amendment rights. But in the late 18th century they used guns for hunting, traveling, and sometimes they used it for personal self-defense. The second amendment also comes into play, the amendment gives a person the right to own a handgun for self-defense. In conclusion, Charles states that guns have been regulated for many years and states that it's a constitutional right.

Wilkinson, Francis. “America's Long History of Gun Regulation.” BloombergQuint, 3 Nov. 2021, https://www.bloombergquint.com/gadfly/supreme-court-gun-case-america-has-long-history-of-regulation.

"How America Got It's Guns: A History of the gun violence Crisis"

In this book titled, “How America Got It’s Guns: A History of the Gun Violence Crisis” by

William Briggs. Briggs talks about guns and its American history. He starts by saying that guns have been around since the Revolutionary War and continue to be around for the gang wars in Chicago. Briggs highlights that guns were an important part of colonial life, especially in New England households. He states that having a gun during that time was a requirement for every household. But, back then crime and murder rates in these areas were low. But Briggs states that a person named Erik Larson blames Hollywood for the expansion in gun use. Briggs doesn't agree, he thinks that just because there is a rise in gun violence it doesn't mean that it's due to Hollywood for some other issue. Lastly, Briggs states that history and research are important parts of the gun debate and it's hard to understand why gun violence is occuring at a fast pace.

Briggs, William. “History .” How America Got Its Guns: A History of the Gun Violence Crisis, University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque, NM, 2017, pp. 6–10. UNM Health Sciences Center , History of gun violence . Accessed 5 Dec. 2021.

"Why Gun Violence Can't Be our New Normal"

After watching a TED talk on “Why gun violence can't be our new normal,” Dan Gross talks about how the United States would be safer if we had certain things in place to stop gun violence. Gross is the President of the Brady campaign which does background checks for gun sales in the United States. In 2016, gun violence was increasing and 90 Americans were killed by guns. Gross said 300 million guns were in American households. Over the years there has been an increase in buying of guns. He also said that 24% of people believed that if a gun was in a household it would make the family safer. Gross pointed out that 9 kids in the United States were killed each day from gun violence- this also added to 900 suicides by gunshot. Gross thinks that commercials and using famous people are the best way to create change when it comes to gun control. With added advertising on gun laws and education, he thinks that there would be a change in the way people have access to guns.

“Why Gun Violence Can't Be Our New Normal.” Performance by Dan Gross, TED Ideas Worth Spreading, Feb. 2016, https://www.ted.com/talks/dan_gross_why_gun_violence_can_t_be_our_new_normal/footnotes?language=en. Accessed 5 Dec. 2021.

Recommendations to reduce gun violence in America

"A Public Health Crisis: Recommendations to reduce Gun Violence in America"

The article written by Karen Cox talks about gun violence being a public health crisis. The article looks at seven evidence-based recommendations for immediate action on gun violence. The first one includes having a solid system for doing background checks but the new background check will include looking at patterns of “dangerousness.” The second one includes creating laws to prevent specific individuals from buying a gun. The people who will have less access include those who are and or were a part of family or domestic violence. She also said that banning assault rifles will reduce gun violence. Another recommendation was for states to have education and history lessons for gun buyers when they apply for their background checks. Some of the last points were to have health care workers play a role in preventing firearm injuries by doing a health screening. Lastly, to have more research done on gun violence and find more ways to solve gun violence. Cox said it's important to know that gun violence will not be solved overnight, it will take a long-term solution and create awareness to solve gun violence.

Cox KS. “A Public Health Crisis: Recommendations to Reduce Gun Violence in America.” Nursing Outlook, vol. 66, no. 3, 2018, pp. 219–220., doi:10.1016/j.outlook.2018.04.010.

"Albuquerque police identify slain high school student; no one has been arrested"

A recent article from the Santa Fe New Mexican talked about how gun violence was used in a high school. West Mesa High School was the latest school to have gun violence on their campus. A 16 year old student shot and killed another student during school hours. The New Mexican stated that this is the second school shooting in the past year. Albuquerque Public schools have started to focus on gun violence and are looking at ways to solve it, (Miller). The Albuquerque superintendent said the school shooting didn’t happen on campus, but it was very close to the school.” “We really need to work together to make sure this doesn’t happen again,” (Miller). The shooting was also noticed by the Attorney General, they said this is a wake up call for gun violence. The school shooting altered the schools to have mental health services for students at the school. Lastly, important people like Mayor Keller and Governor Lujan-Grisham stated that gun violence needs to be prevented and this type of violence shouldn’t happen anymore.

Millercmiller@sfnewmexican.com, Cynthia. “Albuquerque Police Identify Slain High School Student; No One Has Been Arrested.” Santa Fe New Mexican, 26 Feb. 2022,

"No Student Told Washington Middle School Staff That Suspect Had a Gun, Police Say."

A news report on KRQE talked about students returning to school after a school shooting (Wakayama). The news reported that a 13 year old student brought a gun to school. The students showed the gun to his classmates but none of the students reported the gun to their teachers. The staff and teachers believe that there should be a policy now that if a student doesn’t report that type of situation they should be held responsible or be disciplined. “See something, say something” is the mantra for the Albuquerque school system. When the students came back to school after the shooting they were reminded of the mantra (Wakayama). If they see a gun or weapon on campus they are to report the event to a teacher or school staff. The school also has an officer at the school incase students want to report something to the police officers.

Wakayama, Brady. “No Student Told Washington Middle School Staff That Suspect Had a Gun, Police Say.” KRQE NEWS 13 - Breaking News, Albuquerque News, New Mexico News, Weather, and Videos, KRQE NEWS 13 - Breaking News, Albuquerque News, New Mexico News, Weather, and Videos, 19 Aug. 2021, https://www.krqe.com/news/albuquerque-metro/no-student-told-washington-middle-school-staff-that-suspect-had-a-gun-police-say/.

"GUN VIOLENCE IN AMERICAN INDIAN AND ALASKA NATIVE COMMUNITIE."

Theresa Sheldon who is from the Tulalip Tribe recorded a video on “Gun Violence in American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) Communities.''History has shown that Native Americans have experienced gun violence due to colonialism (Sheldon). AI/AN communities are at a higher risk for gun violence, this comes from police brutality, domestic violence and school shootings. The Tulalip tribe experienced gun violence in a school. Sheldon raised the efforts of Native Americans who are trying to stop gun violence. She also states that we have a crisis and that its going to take everyone in the community to make a difference (Sheldon).

Sheldon, Theresa, director. GUN VIOLENCE IN AMERICAN INDIAN AND ALASKA NATIVE COMMUNITIES. Alliance for Gun Responsibility, 28 Apr. 2021, https://gunresponsibility.org/blog/gun-violence-in-american-indian-and-alaska-native-communities/. Accessed 8 Mar. 2022.