Statement by Michael Casserly, Executive Director, Council of the Great City Schools

On the Broward County Shooting

FOR RELEASE                                                        
February 15, 2018                                                      

CONTACT
Henry Duvall at 202-393-2427
hduvall@cgcs.org

Again, we are left without words to express our heartbreak and dismay. Again, our tranquility has been upended and young lives have been shattered. Again, the unthinkable saps the country of its optimism and hope. Again, a troubled man with a gun he shouldn’t have had has taken away our children. Again, we are locked in a national nightmare from which we cannot seem to awake. Again, we are met with the prating of too many of our political leaders.

These killings are personal to us, as are the shootings in too many other urban communities over too many years. These are our children, our colleagues, our brothers and sisters, our neighbors, our fathers and mothers, our husbands, wives, and partners, and our mentors. We not only grieve for them and their families, we recommit ourselves to nationwide gun-control efforts, as well as efforts to strengthen the country’s mental health services. We do not want to lose another member of our family or yours.

America’s Great City Schools stand with our friends and colleagues in the Broward County Public Schools. We offer our love, support, and assistance, and we are grateful for your leadership and courage.