A Syracuse group will protest Rep. John Katko’s affiliation with the NRA this week in response to the Marjory Stoneman Douglas shooting, jumping to politicize the situation when loved ones are grieving.

Swing Left announced the protests after a demonstration outside Katko’s office Thursday. In a statement, the organization criticized his “allegiance to the NRA and his inaction on (gun) control in light of the Florida school shooting that took place,” which left 17 dead and multiple injured.

Protests like this one have erupted across the country, and people are already calling for increased gun control. But as families grieve the losses, it’s essential we don’t politicize the shooting, and instead examine the facts.

Yes, Katko is an ally of the NRA. In fact, he was a top recipient of NRA funds during the 2016 election cycle, according to OpenSecrets. The NRA endorsed Katko for his Congress run in 2014, and Katko’s voted for many NRA-sponsored bills, including one in December that permits gun owners with concealed-carry permits to bring their guns to any state.

To suggest the NRA is responsible for the Marjory Stoneman Douglas shooting is a misleading accusation. If anything, the failure of law enforcement to act on a tidal wave of red flags is what’s most worrisome. The FBI received a warning call about the shooter, Nikolas Cruz, in January, but the information was never given to agents for investigation, according to The Washington Post.

The bureau also investigated a YouTube comment written last year by a user called “nikolas cruz,” that read: “Im going to be a professional school shooter.” The FBI was unable to link the killer to the account, according to NBC News.

The Florida Department of Children and Families also evaluated the shooter after being contacted concerning some of his social media posts, but “determined he was at low risk of harming himself or others,” according to The New York Times. Two months after that investigation was closed, his school recommended him for a “threat assessment,” and on one occasion signaled a mobile crisis unit to get him emergency counseling.

The perpetrators behind the 2016 Pulse Nightclub shooting in Orlando, Florida, and the Charleston, South Carolina, church massacre were also brought to the FBI’s attention before the shootings. These atrocities demonstrate where fixes can be made in the future.

It’s clear it’s not the NRA that failed, but the system itself. Despite the warning signs and alarms raised to law enforcement and school officials, nothing was ever done to deem the shooter mentally unfit to own a firearm. But none of this is preventing the finger-pointing at the NRA.

Progressive outlet ThinkProgress published a report Friday attempting to tie the NRA directly to the shootings, reporting it funded a school marksmanship team the Florida shooter was a member of. While the NRA did fund a marksmanship team at Marjory Stoneman Douglas, it’s important to note the team operated through the school’s JROTC program. Frankly, it would be more concerning if ROTC and JROTC cadets were not properly trained on how to use weapons.

The notion that Katko has done nothing in light of the shootings in regard to gun control is categorically false. He has reached out to Rep. Grace Napolitano (D-Calif.) to examine the connection between mass shootings and mental illness, and said “it is far past time” for more action regarding preventing people with mental illness from buying guns, per auburnpub.com.

“The inaction in Congress to date is unacceptable,” Katko told the publication. “I’m hopeful that our efforts will begin a productive and bipartisan dialogue that will yield real reforms.”

The anger in response to the shooting is more than justified. But in a situation where the FBI and county officials were tipped off on Cruz’s violent behavior, it’s not the NRA or our representatives that failed, but the system itself.

Brandon Ross is a freshman broadcast and digital journalism major. His column appears biweekly. He can be reached at bross02@syr.edu.

Published on February 19, 2018 at 9:30 pm