What is the reason we have young men in this country turning to guns and killing? An answer may come with finding out why their lives have reached such a point, why they see no other option. We need to find out why they are angry, hurt and lonely. And we need to start now.
Our children need mental health care as if there is a plague among them, because there is. We need to focus on what is going on when they sit at a computer. What are they reading and seeing? Is it healthy? We need to focus on what is going on at home. What is the family dynamic, and is it healthy? We need to focus on the situational environment at schools. Is it healthy?
We need mental health care in schools. We need to develop an ongoing conversation with every student and encourage children to lead the effort to include every one of their peers. Our children are suffering, and we should all be worried and start today by taking action to change the mental health conditions each one of our children faces. We can start by asking them what is going on at home, at school and what they see on the computer. But the first thing we should do is ask them how they think this plague can be stopped. As a child living under these threats, they know what’s going on, and maybe, just maybe, why.
Janine Iwaya, Portland
