Photo credit: Callaghan O’Hare/Reuters
The Hogg Foundation offers its deepest condolences to those impacted by the recent shooting in Odessa, Texas. Our hearts go out to those in the Midland/Odessa area and elsewhere who were affected by this tragedy.
The state of Texas has recently borne witness to a spate of mass shooting incidents. Each one has tested our resilience and ability to avoid misplacing blame for these tragic occurrences. Sadly, we have had to issue similar statements on previous mass shootings in Sutherland Springs and El Paso.
In the case of the Odessa shooting, it has been reported that acquaintances of the shooter widely believed he had a mental health condition. If so, he has that in common with millions of Americans, virtually none of whom will ever commit such an atrocious act.
We believe that accurate information is an important part of coping and resilience, and we have faith in our fellow citizens to be able to have the kind of informed, nuanced conversation about gun violence that doesn’t perpetuate harm to people with mental health conditions. We humbly encourage both policymakers and members of the media to educate themselves about the link between mental health and violence so that their participation in such a conversation can be a constructive and informed one.