Hollan Holm

Opinion contributor

It’s been more than 22 years since the morning I was shot.

I was in high school then, only a freshman. We had just finished our before-school prayer group and were crossing the lobby toward class when we heard a series of pops, like firecrackers or balloons popping. I heard that sound two, maybe three times — then everything went black.

I next remember lying prone on the floor, seeing drops of red liquid hitting the white tile in front of me. I wondered if someone was pouring something on my head, then touched the side of my head and looked at my hand. With horror, I realized that the liquid was blood — my blood — and that I’d been shot in the head.

Afraid the shooter would come for me again, I played dead and said what I thought would be my final prayer, begging forgiveness for my sins and asking God to watch over my family. Then I closed my eyes and waited for the end.

But for me, the end did not come that day, nor did I have any lasting physical damage beyond a scar my hair now covers. Many of my classmates at Heath High School weren’t so lucky, though. Three were killed and four others were wounded — several far more gravely than I was.

In the years since, I’ve seen the same kind of tragedy play out again and again, in schools, movie theaters, bars, stores, concerts and places of worship. I’ve seen politicians offering thoughts and prayers for the more than 100 Americans killed by gun violence every day. What I haven’t seen is real action by those same politicians to end this crisis.

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The inaction is particularly galling today — the one year anniversary of the U.S. House of Representatives passing HR 8. The bill would mandate background checks on all gun sales in America, keeping firearms out of the hands of people who shouldn’t have them, like domestic abusers and convicted felons.

One year ago, when HR 8 passed the House, it seemed like it had a real chance of becoming law. It was the first major gun safety legislation passed by either chamber of Congress in over two decades, and it had done so with bipartisan support. More importantly, there was clear evidence that Americans from across the political spectrum support background checks on all gun sales — including 93% of all American voters and 87% of gun owners.

But instead of becoming law, the bill has sat, untouched, on Sen. Mitch McConnell’s desk. As the majority leader, McConnell gets to decide which bills go to the floor for a vote and which bills do not. And for each of the past 365 days, he has decided that this life-saving bill does not even deserve a vote.

Inaction has consequences. While HR 8 has collected dust on McConnell’s desk, an estimated 38,000+ people have been killed by gun violence in the U.S. Twice that many have been wounded. In one mass shooting, the one that killed seven people in West Texas last year, the shooter exploited the exact background check loophole that HR 8 seeks to close. That’s the danger and destruction of McConnell’s failure to act.

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When I see these tragedies now, I no longer worry for myself. I worry about my children. I think about the time my 7-year-old daughter told me about a new safety drill she learned at school — one in which she and her classmates had to be quiet and hide from “the people who wanted to hurt us.” I think about the mornings when I rush to switch off the car radio so she doesn’t have to hear about yet another mass shooting on the news. And I think about how she could go to school and not come back one day, like the girl I shared homeroom class with more than 22 years ago.

But I write today to remind you that we do not have to accept that as the new normal — for my children or anyone else in America. Elected officials like McConnell work for us, not the gun lobby, and it’s time for us to step up and demand more than their thoughts and prayers.

Fortunately, the people of Kentucky have an opportunity to do just that this fall. McConnell is up for reelection, and though he controls votes in the Senate, he does not control us. I know that when I cast my vote, I’ll be thinking of the children who died 22 years ago and all of those who have been affected by gun violence since. I’ll be thinking of my daughter. I’ll be thinking of my senator’s “thoughts,” and I’ll be thinking about his “prayers,” too. And, with all of that in mind, I will be voting against Mitch McConnell.

Hollan Holm is a Survivor Fellow in the Everytown for Gun Safety Survivor Network. He lives in Kentucky.