Politicizing an Active Shooter Event: Tucson, AZ

Dec. 19, 2017
Few events generate the kind of explosion of new gun control law support as an active shooter event held at a political rally. When one of their own is attacked, Congress responds in an understandable fashion, since they are human and react emotionally.

It is shameful, but a reality, that active shooter events and gun control efforts have seemed to always exist hand in hand; at least in recent years. Since the attack at Columbine High School in 1999, it’s relatively easy to track and document how various political entities have attempted to leverage the emotional response to such horrific events in favor of generating new gun laws, new restrictions on gun owners and other gun-related rules, etc. Few events generate the kind of explosion of new gun control law support as an active shooter event held at a political rally. When one of their own is attacked, Congress responds in an understandable fashion, since they are human and react emotionally.

That’s exactly what happened after the attack on Representative Gabrielle Giffords on the morning of January 8th, 2011.  That day, Representative Giffords was holding a political rally (also referred to as a “constituent meeting”) in a parking lot in Casas Adobes, a suburb of Tucson, Arizona.

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The remainder of this article is part of the book "Active Killers and the Crimes They Perpetrated," available in print or ebook via Amazon.

About the Author

Joshua Borelli

Joshua Borelli has been studying active shooter and mass attack events over the course of the past several years, commensurate with receiving training on response and recovery to natural disasters and civil disturbances. Joshua started to outline this series of articles in an attempt to identify commonalities and logistical needs patterns for response.

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