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VOA慢速英语--规模枪击事件改变了美国人处理悲剧的方式

时间:2019-06-07 23:55来源:互联网 提供网友:nan   字体: [ ]
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Mass Shootings Change How Americans Deal with Tragedy

Pardeep Singh Kaleka has examined how people across the United States react to mass shootings.

Seven years ago, a white supremacist invaded a Sikh religious center in Wisconsin and killed six people, including Kaleka’s father. His father died holding a knife he had tried to use in an attempt to stop the shooter.

Now, whenever a gunman attacks another U.S. city or town, Kaleka leaves a supportive message on social media. Often times he will then travel to the affected1 community to help others face the pain he shares.

Kaleka has been to Newtown, Connecticut, where a gunman killed 26 people at Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012. Kaleka also has visited other communities affected by violence.

“We’ve become kind of a family,” he told The Associated Press.

The number of U.S. mass shootings has increased in recent years. The most recent attack happened last Friday, when a gunman killed 12 people in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

Changing the lives of thousands

As a result of the shootings, a community of heartbreak has formed, touching2 and changing the lives of thousands of people. The attacks have also changed how Americas talk about and prepare for such danger. Today, the terms “active shooter” and “shelter in place” need no explanation. More schools are holding exercises to prepare students for the possibility of a shooter. And even some religious centers now have armed guards.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder4 (PTSD) was once largely linked with soldiers who had terrible memories of violent battles. Now, some U.S. police officers and firefighters affected by the violence they have seen are seeking treatment.

Healing centers have opened to offer survivors5 therapy and a place to gather. Support groups of survivors of mass shootings have formed.

Government officials, doctors, police and other leaders who have experienced these crises are also doing what they can to help. Many offer support and guidance to the next town that has to deal with a mass shooting.

Stephen Scaffidi had been mayor of Oak Creek6, Wisconsin for just four months at the time of the Sikh religious center attack in 2012. He remembers a call that night from the mayor of Aurora7, Colorado, where 12 people had been shot and killed at a movie theater less than three weeks earlier.

Scaffidi said, “He gave me the best advice I could ever receive in that moment: ‘Be calm. Reassure8 your community. And only speak to what you know. Don’t … pretend to be an expert on something that you’re not."

Last year, a shooting at a Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, resulted in the deaths of 17 people. Two days later, Parkland Mayor Christine Hunschofsky met with the mother of a 6-year-old killed by a gunman in 2012. The woman offered the mayor advice about the future.

Three months later, it was Hunschofsky’s turn. She sent a message to the incoming mayor of Santa Fe, Texas, where a school shooting had left 10 dead.

“She told me this is not going to be the hardest day and harder days are coming,” recalled Santa Fe Mayor Jason Tabor. “‘Prepare for that.’ She was 100 percent right.”

Mass shootings represent a small percentage of all killings9 nationwide, but the magnitude -- or size -- of their effect sets them apart.

In 1999, the Columbine, Colorado shooting shocked Americans with its unforgettable images of students fleeing from their high school. Today, the public sees and hears about these events as they take place, through live video feeds on social media.

Jaclyn Schildkraut is an expert on crime. She says Americans no longer see mass shootings as unusual events.

“We really don’t have a consistent, prolonged conversation about these events and how to prevent them,” she said. Schildkraut is with the State University of New York at Oswego.

Effect of mass shootings on the survivors

Studies have offered suggestions about the emotional effect of mass shootings. The National Center for PTSD estimates that 28 percent of people who have witnessed a mass shooting develop the condition. And about a third develop acute stress disorder.

Laura Wilson is an assistant professor at the University of Mary Washington in Virginia. She examined information from 11 studies of PTSD symptoms among more than 8,000 people.

Wilson said, “Mass shootings are a different type of trauma3...Most people have a hard time reconciling the idea that a young, innocent person made the good decision to go to school, was sitting there, learning and was murdered. That does not make sense to us.”

And yet, some people do not fully11 understand the lasting12 emotional wounds of those who escaped physical harm.

Stephen Benning is a psychology13 professor at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas. He led a PTSD study of survivors of the 2017 Las Vegas mass shooting that left 58 people dead. Most of the survivors had a friend, family member or co-worker ask them why they were still troubled -- as early as 45 days after the event.

“Almost everyone had someone say, ‘Get over it. Why are you letting this bother you?’” Benning said.

In March of 2019, two student survivors of the Parkland school shooting killed themselves. Around the same time, the father of a 6-year-old girl killed in Newtown died of what appeared to be suicide. He had set up an organization in his daughter’s name to support research on violence prevention.

Christine Hunschofsky says that after the Parkland suicides, many people sought mental health help for the first time. The community’s wellness center, established after the attack, extended its hours.

A similar program, the Resiliency Center of Newtown, is a gathering14 place for those dealing15 with anxiety, depression and PTSD. Although the school attack happened over six years ago, the center still gets new visitors, and after every mass shooting, more people stop by.

Stephanie Cinque is leads the center. She said, “You don’t just get over it and move on … Your heart hurts every time a new tragedy happens."

She added, "You know what those people who are … going to have to go through and what the community is going to go through, and that’s hard.”

I’m Caty Weaver16.

And I’m Ashley Thompson.

Words in This Story

supremacist – n. a person who believes that one group of people is better than all other groups and should have control over them

therapy – n. the treatment of physical or mental illnesses

reassure – v. to make someone)feel less afraid, upset, or doubtful

feed(s) – n. a data format10 used for providing users with frequently updated content

consistent – adj. of the same quality

prolonged – adj. continuing for a long time

acute – adj. very serious or dangerous

symptom(s) – n. a change in the body or mind which indicates that a disease is present

trauma – n. a very difficult or unpleasant experience that causes someone to have mental or emotional problems usually for a long time

reconciling – v. finding a way of making two different ideas or facts exist or be true at the same time

bother – v. to cause someone to feel troubled, worried, or concerned

anxiety – n. fear or nervousness about what might happen


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 affected TzUzg0     
adj.不自然的,假装的
参考例句:
  • She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
  • His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。
2 touching sg6zQ9     
adj.动人的,使人感伤的
参考例句:
  • It was a touching sight.这是一幅动人的景象。
  • His letter was touching.他的信很感人。
3 trauma TJIzJ     
n.外伤,精神创伤
参考例句:
  • Counselling is helping him work through this trauma.心理辅导正帮助他面对痛苦。
  • The phobia may have its root in a childhood trauma.恐惧症可能源于童年时期的创伤。
4 disorder Et1x4     
n.紊乱,混乱;骚动,骚乱;疾病,失调
参考例句:
  • When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后,他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
  • It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。
5 survivors 02ddbdca4c6dba0b46d9d823ed2b4b62     
幸存者,残存者,生还者( survivor的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
  • survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者
6 creek 3orzL     
n.小溪,小河,小湾
参考例句:
  • He sprang through the creek.他跳过小河。
  • People sunbathe in the nude on the rocks above the creek.人们在露出小溪的岩石上裸体晒日光浴。
7 aurora aV9zX     
n.极光
参考例句:
  • The aurora is one of nature's most awesome spectacles.极光是自然界最可畏的奇观之一。
  • Over the polar regions we should see aurora.在极地高空,我们会看到极光。
8 reassure 9TgxW     
v.使放心,使消除疑虑
参考例句:
  • This seemed to reassure him and he continued more confidently.这似乎使他放心一点,于是他更有信心地继续说了下去。
  • The airline tried to reassure the customers that the planes were safe.航空公司尽力让乘客相信飞机是安全的。
9 killings 76d97e8407f821a6e56296c4c9a9388c     
谋杀( killing的名词复数 ); 突然发大财,暴发
参考例句:
  • His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
  • The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。
10 format giJxb     
n.设计,版式;[计算机]格式,DOS命令:格式化(磁盘),用于空盘或使用过的磁盘建立新空盘来存储数据;v.使格式化,设计,安排
参考例句:
  • Please format this floppy disc.请将这张软盘格式化。
  • The format of the figure is very tasteful.该图表的格式很雅致。
11 fully Gfuzd     
adv.完全地,全部地,彻底地;充分地
参考例句:
  • The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气,然后全部呼出。
  • They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。
12 lasting IpCz02     
adj.永久的,永恒的;vbl.持续,维持
参考例句:
  • The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
  • We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。
13 psychology U0Wze     
n.心理,心理学,心理状态
参考例句:
  • She has a background in child psychology.她受过儿童心理学的教育。
  • He studied philosophy and psychology at Cambridge.他在剑桥大学学习哲学和心理学。
14 gathering ChmxZ     
n.集会,聚会,聚集
参考例句:
  • He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
  • He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。
15 dealing NvjzWP     
n.经商方法,待人态度
参考例句:
  • This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
  • His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。
16 weaver LgWwd     
n.织布工;编织者
参考例句:
  • She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快,而且布的质量很好。
  • The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。
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