Should Buildings Where Deadly Shootings Happened Be Destroyed?
2024-06-30
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1Deadly mass shootings have affected many American communities in recent years.
2These communities have had to face a decision:
3Do they keep the buildings where the bloodshed happened? Or do they tear them down?
4One example recently happened in Parkland, Florida.
5That is where, in February 2018, a gunman killed 14 students and three adults and wounded 17 others after opening fire at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
6Earlier this month, heavy equipment began tearing down, or demolishing, the three-story building where the victims died.
7Community members in Parkland who spoke to the Associated Press (AP) said they felt the destruction of the building was a necessary step.
8Former student Bryan Lequerique said, "It's something that we all need. It's time to bring an end to this very hurtful chapter in everyone's lives."
9Eric Garner is a broadcasting and film teacher at the school.
10He told the AP, "For 6½ years we have been looking at this monument to mass murder that has been on campus every day."
11Other places have considered similar decisions.
12Uvalde, Texas, is where a mass shooting in May 2022 claimed the lives of 19 children and two teachers.
13Officials there decided to destroy Robb Elementary School and build a new school.
14The community also chose to build a memorial to the shooting victims.
15In Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the Tree of Life synagogue was torn down to make room for a new spiritual center and memorial.
16The October 2018 shooting at the Jewish religious center killed 11 people.
17Other communities have made similar choices to demolish buildings where mass shootings happened.
18But the Tops Friendly Markets in Buffalo, New York, and the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina, both reopened after mass killings.
19Both places experienced race-linked mass shootings.
20Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, still stands.
21The school's library, however, where much of the bloodshed happened, was replaced.
22The Columbine shooting in 1999 left 15 people dead.
23"Finding a balance between its function as a high school and the need for memorialization has been a long process," former Columbine student Riley Burkhart wrote earlier this year in an essay looking back at the shooting.
24Experts say such decisions involve more than just emotion and tragedy.
25Sometimes, it is simply a question of resources; not all school districts can afford to tear down and rebuild.
26And sometimes it is about not wanting to give those who might support the shooter a place to center their attention.
27Daniel Fountain is a professor of history at Meredith College in North Carolina.
28He told the AP he thinks it is a good idea to tear down buildings that could be used by individuals who might support the shooters or their cause and to somehow "celebrate" the deaths.
29Another reason why people might want to destroy such buildings has to do with ideas about mental health.
30"There are changing norms about things like trauma and closure that are at play that today encourage the notion of demolishing these spaces," said Timothy Recuber.
31He is a sociologist at Smith College in Massachusetts.
32To some people, keeping a building standing can send a message of defiance.
33To them, leaving a structure standing does not mean the community is accepting a tragedy.
34Instead, it can show that people are ready to move on.
35But to others, the possibility that people could face trauma again by seeing the building is most important.
36Why, for example, should a building where people met violent deaths be left standing?
37Jennifer Talarico is a psychology professor at Lafayette College in Pennsylvania.
38She has studied how people form personal memories of public events.
39She noted that, since these decisions can be complex and involve different groups, they are often not easy to make.
40"It's not a simple choice of should we knock it down or renovate or let it be," Talarico said.
41I'm Bryan Lynn.
1Deadly mass shootings have affected many American communities in recent years. These communities have had to face a decision: Do they keep the buildings where the bloodshed happened? Or do they tear them down? 2One example recently happened in Parkland, Florida. That is where, in February 2018, a gunman killed 14 students and three adults and wounded 17 others after opening fire at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Earlier this month, heavy equipment began tearing down, or demolishing, the three-story building where the victims died. 3Community members in Parkland who spoke to the Associated Press (AP) said they felt the destruction of the building was a necessary step. Former student Bryan Lequerique said, "It's something that we all need. It's time to bring an end to this very hurtful chapter in everyone's lives." 4Eric Garner is a broadcasting and film teacher at the school. He told the AP, "For 6½ years we have been looking at this monument to mass murder that has been on campus every day." 5Other places have considered similar decisions. 6Uvalde, Texas, is where a mass shooting in May 2022 claimed the lives of 19 children and two teachers. Officials there decided to destroy Robb Elementary School and build a new school. The community also chose to build a memorial to the shooting victims. 7In Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the Tree of Life synagogue was torn down to make room for a new spiritual center and memorial. The October 2018 shooting at the Jewish religious center killed 11 people. Other communities have made similar choices to demolish buildings where mass shootings happened. 8But the Tops Friendly Markets in Buffalo, New York, and the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina, both reopened after mass killings. Both places experienced race-linked mass shootings. 9Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, still stands. The school's library, however, where much of the bloodshed happened, was replaced. The Columbine shooting in 1999 left 15 people dead. 10"Finding a balance between its function as a high school and the need for memorialization has been a long process," former Columbine student Riley Burkhart wrote earlier this year in an essay looking back at the shooting. 11Experts say such decisions involve more than just emotion and tragedy. Sometimes, it is simply a question of resources; not all school districts can afford to tear down and rebuild. And sometimes it is about not wanting to give those who might support the shooter a place to center their attention. 12Daniel Fountain is a professor of history at Meredith College in North Carolina. He told the AP he thinks it is a good idea to tear down buildings that could be used by individuals who might support the shooters or their cause and to somehow "celebrate" the deaths. 13Another reason why people might want to destroy such buildings has to do with ideas about mental health. 14"There are changing norms about things like trauma and closure that are at play that today encourage the notion of demolishing these spaces," said Timothy Recuber. He is a sociologist at Smith College in Massachusetts. 15To some people, keeping a building standing can send a message of defiance. To them, leaving a structure standing does not mean the community is accepting a tragedy. Instead, it can show that people are ready to move on. 16But to others, the possibility that people could face trauma again by seeing the building is most important. Why, for example, should a building where people met violent deaths be left standing? 17Jennifer Talarico is a psychology professor at Lafayette College in Pennsylvania. She has studied how people form personal memories of public events. She noted that, since these decisions can be complex and involve different groups, they are often not easy to make. 18"It's not a simple choice of should we knock it down or renovate or let it be," Talarico said. 19I'm Bryan Lynn. 20The Associated Press reported this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the report for VOA Learning English. 21______________________________________ 22Words in This Story 23story - n. one floor of a building 24function - n. the purpose of something or someone 25essay -n. a moderately short piece of writing expressing a person's thoughts about one subject 26trauma - n. severe shock caused by a bad experience 27encourage - v. to talk or behave in a way that gives someone confidence to do something 28defy - v. to refuse to obey someone or something 29renovate - v. repair or decorate a building that is old or in bad condition