Instructor and class,

A recent disaster that happened just last year Saturday October 27th not far from where I live and very close to where I was working at the time. Robert Bowers, a gunman opened fire in a Pittsburgh synagogue. This tragedy killed 11 people and injured an additional 6. This was a violent hate crime. This was an attack directly against the Jewish community. According to Nies and McEwen 2019, the United States is one of the most violent countries in the industrialized world. It is extremely worrisome to think about how anywhere you go these days can place you in danger. The fact that every single employer and school has active shooter drills that just started about 10 years ago or so is just disheartening but also this is reality. In contrast to interpersonal violence, which affects only one or two individuals, community violence usually occurs suddenly and without warning and can potentially destroy entire segments of the population. Community violence includes workplace violence, youth violence, gang-related violence, hate crimes, and terrorism (Nies & McEwen 2019). The fact that people are prepared with active shooter drills helps get help and response much sooner. SWAT teams were dispatched in this case as well as several other local police officers and FBI. Quick action of a Rabi when he heard first fires probably saved a lot more lives that day.

References

Nies, M. A., & McEwen, M. (2019). Community/Public Health Nursing: Promoting the Health of Populations(7th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Saunders/Elsevier.

11 Killed in Synagogue Massacre; Suspect Charged With 29 Counts. (2018, October 29). Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/27/us/active-shoot…