Once again, national newspaper headlines are filled with stories of death and destruction. Less than one week after the series of mass shootings that occurred in Atlanta, 10 victims died at the hands of gun violence in Boulder, Colo.

Once again, we are left wondering how many innocent lives must be lost before the winds of change begin to blow across our nation. There is no conceivable reason any individual should fear for their life while attending school, seeing a movie or going to work. The recent atrocities in Boulder and Atlanta represent the darkest corners of our humanity. Now more than ever, we must recognize the actions we can take to prevent similar travesties in the future. The loss of even one individual to an act of gun violence is an indescribable tragedy — a tragedy that our country experiences far too often.

It is our responsibility to pierce this darkness with a collective light. We must fight to ensure that the individuals responsible for these acts of violence are the exceptions among our human race, not the norm. Ignorance and hatred are deeply ingrained in the framework of this country, but it is never too late to sever these connections at their roots.

What if one of these mass shootings were to occur here in North Carolina? What if we were mourning the deaths of some of our fellow students? These possibilities are frightening, and yet we must consider them nonetheless.

We here at the Old Gold & Black encourage you to do whatever you can to mitigate the spread of ignorance and hatred, both on Wake Forest’s campus and around the country. Actions we can take today may come in the form of voting for representatives who support stricter gun laws, volunteering for a gun control advocacy organization or educating yourself and others about legislation and public policy. Though the measures we take as individuals may differ, it is imperative that our collective action is swift and purposeful.

May Officer Eric Talley, 51; Denny Stong, 20; Neven Stanisic, 23; Rikki Olds, 25; Tralona Bartkowiak, 49; Suzanne Fountain, 59; Teri Leiker, 51; Kevin Mahoney, 61; Lynn Murray, 62; and Jody Waters, 65, rest in peace.

And may we as a country institute the necessary legislative and educational changes that might ensure a tragic mass shooting of this nature never occurs again.