Another school shooting. I walked into the Y and there it was, all over the bank of tvs in front of the treadmills. My heart broke. Suddenly, unexpectedly, it was just too much.
Part of what hit me was the simple reaction to the suffering and death. The hint of what families and friends and community members would suffer in the immediate days and for a long time to come. One statistic I heard is that over 150,000 students have been impacted by school shootings. Imagine, running for your life, losing friends, or walking past injured or dead students, and all the trauma that might affect you as a result.
But for me the other part of the tragedy was that as I watched the scene unfold, I just couldn’t believe that it would make any difference. We are the only country in the world that suffers these kinds of incidents regularly, and it is so obvious that it’s a result of profiteering and gun laws.
Seeing another school shooting on tv felt like just part of what it means to live in the US. Thus the title, “Welcome to the New Normal.”
Often as a songwriter I want to provide a sense of uplift or possibility or irony or action at the end of a song. I couldn’t do it with this one. Just outrage and disbelief raise their ugly heads. Because in the short term I don’t feel much hope about this.
I have worked with Artists for Sake Kids aka ASK which is a group of artists who work with kids who are concerned about these very issues. It’s a good place to find out more. I believe we do need to keep our voices loud, and, in particular, to hold lawmakers accountable. Too many of them are in thrall to the NRA and associates. You can see that with the public records of campaign contributions.
Sometimes the work is simply to grieve, though. For kids and teachers, and for our country.
Students walking out the door, hands in the air
They might be scared but they’re well prepared.
Follow the procedures they were taught in a drill
Don’t know when it will happen but we know that it will.
Teachers learning strategies for counter attack
Inservice hours spent on fighting back
Throw a book or a stapler to buy a little time
So kids can run away in zig zag lines
welcome to the new normal
This is what we’ve become
welcome to the new normal
Blind deaf and numb.
Reporters talking tactics and emergency logistics
Make a brief mention of the grim statistics.
Interview a family member crying at the scene
Then cut to a commercial on your tv screen.
Now is not the time to discuss the situation.
Time for prayers and healing in our nation.
Light a candle hold a vigil or gather with your friends.
But keep the candle handy you’ll need it again
welcome to the new normal
Living on shaky ground
welcome to the new normal
It’s the upside down
Lies are the currency of this debate
places at the table for the faces of hate
It’s like being held in the grip of a snake
What will it take what will it take
Stories float by like carnival ducks
Dragging our attention to the mud and the muck
There’s not enough water in the salty sea
To wash away the sorrow from you and me
welcome to the new normal
This is what we’ve become
welcome to the new normal
Blind deaf and numb.
© Stuart Stotts 2018
Thank you, Stuart. Here is another organization that’s working for strong gun safety laws. http://lawcenter.giffords.org/resources/model-laws/
America can change this gun culture. We can and we must.
Oh Stuart thank you so much for writing this…I am absolutely broken by this one, because as you say, nothing is going to change in the short term. I am usually a super optimistic person with a long view of the ups and downs of politics, but this one left me angry, outraged, and feeling that all I have is my voice to raise loud and long that this is NOT Normal!!!!!
Thank-you for having the courage to present this song. I am outraged and believe that we have to keep telling the stories and invent new language to keep these horrific events from ever becoming Normal.
Well put…
yeah – you said it. I used to live in a country….I don’t know this country
Another great song, Stuart! You have captured what so many of us feel. I’d love to see you change the printed lyrics to reflect what you recorded…
Thank you Stuart. I hate having the lockdown drills, and having to imagine how I would protect the kids in my room – would I try to hide them? help them escape? squeeze them into my car and drive them to safety? try to fend off a shooter with the pvc pipe I use for limbo? Why do politicians try to make it either gun control or money for mental health care? it’s not either/or – it’s both and more! Get rid of automatic and semi automatic weapons, fund schools, counselors, therapists, and restore civil discussion of all topics instead of this daily flying off the handle. aargh. Kim
A song that is profound and almost too beautiful for its message. I thank you for giving voice to what we all feel. It IS an important step on the road to change. Thank you, Stuart