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xiv Foreword An eye-opener for many is that fact that Columbine was not the first mass school shooting. A major topic that resonated with me is that no one is immune and as I have stated during my presentations, if someone had told me that a Columbine tragedy could have happened at Columbine, I would have stated unequivocally, “Not in our community.” As this book makes clear, schools, churches, hospital, airports, movie theaters, and other locations are potential targets for mass shooting events. Jackie does a wonderful job of giving the grim history of mass and school shootings in America and the different types of school shootings that have taken place over the years. I must confess that in reading Glenn W. Muschert’s “School Shootings” chapter, I did have chills and was retraumatized when he stated: “The 1999 Columbine High School shootings in Littleton, Colorado, have become a cultural touchstone for rampage-type or ‘Columbine-style’ attacks.” It seems that each time another mass shooting occurs in our world, it is referenced as another “Columbine-like attack” or shooting. The role the media plays in the aftermath was a subject that hit close to home. I made a statement that “you do not get in an argument with people who buy ink by the barrel.” It is my humble opinion that the reason we are still talking about Co- lumbine after all this time is the role the media played in keeping the story relevant. Once again, the book does a marvelous job of statistically supporting my state- ment. The unbiased presentation of research by Jackie and the other contributors in this book will encourage people to think, converse, and yes, passionately argue their point of view. It will also get people to realize that when it comes to mass shootings, there are no simple answers and no “one size fits all” solution. As Americans struggle to understand recent mass shooting events such as the ones that took place at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, at an outdoor con- cert in Las Vegas, Nevada, and at a church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, chapters such as “The Role of Firearms in Mass Shooting” are even more relevant. This chapter does a superb job of giving both sides of a highly emotional topic. I hear the passionate arguments from both sides of the aisle on the floor of Congress, as well as from families directly impacted by mass shootings. What intrigues me about this book is that both anti-gun and pro-gun advocates give testimony. Schild- kraut does not give you her own opinions, but rather gives you research and argu- ments from experts on both sides so you can make the decision. With our country so divided on this topic, I hope that Mass Shootings in America: Understanding the Debates, Causes, and Responses can help people understand other perspectives and come together to forge compromises that can help us address the senseless vio- lence that is occurring in our country today. Another issue covered in this book that resonates with me is the role mental health plays in the shootings that occur in America. The chapter “Mass Shooters and Mental Illness” does an excellent job of looking at the research and determin- ing the role of mental health in mass shooting events. I do not believe that the kill- ers came out of their mothers’ wombs hating or planning a mass shooting. I think of the two killers at Columbine. I have seen pictures of them when they were youngsters in their soccer uniforms or smiling for their elementary school pictures. I also remember how they fired their long rifles at me. Did mental illness play a role in their act of terrorism, or in acts carried out by the gunmen at Virginia Tech