Music Notes

In the wake of the Robb Elementary shooting, pop music megastars express outrage over America's gun laws

by Mike Usinger on May 26th, 2022 at 1:12 PM
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      Like former ’90s punk rock bassist Beto O’Rourke, some of the biggest names in pop music are making it clear they’ve had enough of gun violence in America.

      On Tuesday (May 25) Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas became the latest site of a mass shooting in the United States. Just days after purchasing two automatic weapons, an 18-year-old gunman walked into the school and shot to death 19 children and two teachers.

      In the wake of the shooting, singer Brandon Flowers of the Killers has told Rolling Stone that such incidents have become part of living in America.

      “What’s sad is that we’ve come to expect it,” Flowers said. “It’s not shocking, it’s just heartbreaking because people should be up in arms and our politicians should be fighting to figure it out and they’re just not.”

      Indeed, top Republicans such as Ted Cruz, Mitch McConnell, and __________ (insert name of NRA-funded swamp-dweller here) have offered thoughts and prayers and sweet fuck-all else since the shooting.

      On the Democrat side of the aisle meanwhile, imagine what kind of change might be possible in a world where politicians modelled themselves after O’Rourke, whose old punk rock band Foss featured future At the Drive-In founder Cedric Bixler-Zavala .

      Yesterday, O’Rourke showed up at a press conference where Cruz, gun-loving Texas Governor Greg Abbott, Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin, and assorted other NRA toadies suggested that mental illness, not guns, were responsible for the Robb Elementary School shooting.

      Walking to the foot of the stage, O’Rourke started with “Gov. Abbott, I have something to say. The time to stop the next shooting is right now, and you are doing nothing.”

      McLaughlin—a Republican and sometimes Tucker Carson—jumped to his feet and screamed that O’Rourke was a “sick son of a bitch”. And when O’Rourke yelled “It’s on you” as security escorted him out of the auditorium, McLaughlin fired back with “It’s on assholes like you. Why don’t you get out of here?”

      The United States has seen more than 200 mass shootings so far this year, including a spree in Buffalo on May 14 where 10 people died. After that incident Republicans were quick to offer their thoughts and prayers.

      Just as O’Rourke isn’t going to be quiet about America’s gun problem, the music world is also standing up.

      Taking to her Instagram account with the hashtag #guncontrolnow, and the words “No more words action only”, Madonna wrote:

      How is this possible that an 18 year old boy, who is a child himself, can purchase 2 automatic Rifles on his birthday with no background check, no safety training, no questions asked?????
      The shooter posted countless warnings on IG and facebook announcing his plans to shoot
      His grandmother and students in a school.
      No one noticed!! No one stopped him.
      How Is this possible?
      The NRA refuses to change its position and legislation cannot get one bill passed that requires tougher fire arm safety laws. In spite of the fact that there have been more gun deaths in America than there are days in this year. How is this possible???

      Selena Gomez took to Twitter to state that she doesn’t know what to say anymore. But that didn’t stop her from writing: “Those in power need to stop giving lip service and actually change the laws to prevent these shootings in the future.”

      Megastar Taylor Swift weighed in with:

      With the words “Thank you Steve Kerr”, Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea also reposted the above impassioned speech on the tragedy by the Golden State Warriors coach. He then retweeted pictures of some of the children who died at Robb Elementary School. 

      Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello also used his Instagram account to post photos of the children slain at the school.

      https://www.instagram.com/p/Cd_QCCGlCP5/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

      U.K.-born Peter Frampton offered an English perspective on things with this:

      Flowers meanwhile suggested that, once all the current talking and uproar over the latest mass shooting has subsided, it’s going to be back to business as usual.

      “It’s just such a big issue for the right,” he told Rolling Stone. “A lot of people are going to vote Republican, that is a major issue for them and I don’t see that changing anytime soon.”

       

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