Panel Addresses Gun Violence Concerns

So far, in 2023, there have been more than 400 mass shootings, according to the Gun Violence Archive. If that number disturbs you, you aren’t alone.

How can people feel safe in the grocery store? Sending their kids to school? Going out? These are the questions speakers sought to answer at a panel called “How to Cope with Stress in a World Where Gun Violence Exists,” hosted by Baltimore Jewish Council and Jewish Community Services, agencies of The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore. The panel took place at Baltimore Hebrew Congregation on Aug. 29.

The panelists were Carey Kus of the Baltimore County Police Department; Jennifer Rudo, coordinator of wellness programming and mentoring at JCS; and Melissa Ladd, the Maryland chapter leader for Moms Demand Action.

“If you paid attention to the news in the last couple of weeks, you know that there’s been a couple of university shootings and suicides,” Kus said. “This isn’t something that’s going away. This is our reality.”

Kus advised the audience to be prepared when they go out in public. People need to know where the exits are and what they could potentially hide behind or use as a barricade, and they should stay vigilant.

While many companies, schools and houses of worship are good about making a plan in the event of gun violence, people need to be ready wherever they are, Kus said.

“When you’re out and about, you should be [thinking about this], you need to mentally prepare yourself,” Kus said. “If you don’t, you’re going to freeze.”

But this heightened sense of awareness can come at a cost. Always being ready for danger takes a toll on mental health, according to Rudo.

“Our stress levels have increased tremendously,” Rudo said.

Rudo, who holds several certifications in stress management, acknowledged her own elevated stress levels.

“We get in our car, the emergency broadcast comes on and we think to ourselves as we often do: Another shooting? Where was it? How many people?” Rudo said.

Rudo acknowledged the effect constant shootings and their media coverage can have on families.

“Every time the 6 o’clock news comes on, my heart starts racing,” Rudo said.

Turning the TV on, muting it or leaving the room are ways to combat this stress, Rudo said. Even just switching your mind to something else for a minute can help, she added.

Rudo also shared meditation and breathing exercises and grounding practices with the audience. She also spoke of the Emotional Freedom Technique. This method, known commonly as EFT, is an alternative acupressure therapy treatment that has been authorized as a treatment for war veterans, according to The Tapping Solution Foundation.

“This is our new way of life,” Rudo said. “Let’s make sure we’re handling it the best that we can and the healthiest.”

The third speaker, Ladd, paired statistics with a message of hope and determination. She spoke about the action people are taking all over the United States and specifically in Maryland to combat gun violence.

“We have a special kind of stress because of this issue,” Ladd said. “Our group is doing everything we can to end gun violence in Maryland and in this country.”

Moms Demand Action has more than 6 million supporters with chapters in every state and Washington, D.C. Each year, Ladd’s chapter goes to Annapolis to meet with lawmakers about gun violence. In 2013, in the wake of the Sandy Hook shooting, Maryland passed a “very comprehensive” bill called the Firearms Safety Act, Ladd said.

In response to an audience member’s comment that legislation amounted to nothing more than talk, Ladd noted Maryland’s lower gun rate compared to states that haven’t passed laws like Maryland’s “ghost gun” ban.

A ghost gun is an unserialized, untraceable firearm that can be bought online and assembled at home. Since the ban, all guns in Maryland are required to be serialized.

According to Ladd, Maryland also has stricter requirements for permits and regulations on concealed carry.

Another audience member expressed concerns about Maryland’s laws being challenged by the Supreme Court. Ladd answered that two of the bills they worked on last session addressed the Supreme Court’s “gutting” of Maryland’s concealed carry laws.

“I’m confident that if any decisions were to come down that would impact our laws, we would have a swift response in Maryland,” Ladd said.