THE SQUIZ

Nineteen children, 2 adults and a gunman are dead after the 18yo went on a shooting spree at Robb Elementary School in the small town of Uvalde in southwest Texas. The kids were aged 7-10yo and were set to start their extended summer holiday later this week. It’s the deadliest attack on an American school since the Sandy Hook massacre in Connecticut in 2012. Yesterday, US President Joe Biden demanded action be taken by lawmakers. “When in God’s name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby?” he asked.

WHAT HAPPENED?

Local resident Salvador Rolando Ramos conducted the attack on the school with one or both of the semi-automatic rifles he bought just after his 18th birthday last week. He posted to Facebook prior to the rampage to say he was going to shoot his grandmother who he’d recently moved in with (she’s now in a critical condition in hospital) and another to announce he was going to shoot an elementary school. Texas Governor Greg Abbott said the gunman went into the school through a backdoor before entering a classroom and locking 19 children and 2 teachers inside before opening fire.  Authorities forced their way into the barricaded classroom and shot and killed the gunman. Ramos’ neighbour of 17 years, Ruben Flores, told American TV “he was quiet and, from what I could see, the mother never really showed love. He had a rough life,” he said.

WHEN WILL THE GUN LAWS CHANGE?

If the history of gun control in America is anything to go by, the chances of stricter gun controls are slim. Yesterday’s tragedy was America’s 27th school shooting and the 212th mass shooting this year. President Biden yesterday urged lawmakers to pass “common-sense” gun laws like background checks on gun owners and restrictions on automatic weapons. “What in God’s name do you need an assault weapon for except to kill someone?” he asked. And he acknowledged the parents’ and community’s loss. “To lose a child is like having a piece of your soul ripped away,” he said. The National Rifle Association, which has long opposed gun restrictions, is holding its annual convention in Texas on Friday. It will be attended by Texas Governor Greg Abbott, Senator Ted Cruz and former President Donald Trump.