Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis is giving $1 million to help the Uvalde Consolidated School District following the tragic mass shooting that left 21 dead, not including the shooter. The money will be used to set up impenetrable doors, cameras inside and outside of schools, as well as putting up an unscalable fence outside.
“We are proud to be part of something to make the children in these schools safer,” Davis said. “Two weeks ago, I had a conversation with Vann. He told me about the hurt his hometown was going through.
“Vann told me that he had a grandson attending public school. He said his family thought about having him go to a private school next year, but he wanted him to attend public school as Vann and his son had done growing up in Uvalde.
“He said that Uvalde was in pain and needed help. I asked him what we would do to help ease that pain.”
Vann is Vann McElroy, Super Bowl winner and former Raiders star.
On its face this is a great thing being done by the Davis and the Raiders, an organization that helps out its “family” when in need.
There’s something about impenetrable doors and unscalable fences that makes this sound more like a prison, than a school.
The threat of gun violence is very real and as usual the United States leads the developed world in mass shootings. But these killings exist because of guns, and the ease at which anyone can obtain them.
Has anyone thought of the unintended consequences of setting up a learning environment, which is what schools are, with this kind of security?
The answers to this aren’t simple and there’s no way to solve this problem immediately. Even if common-sense gun laws were passed with the expediency that some legislation gets passed, it wouldn’t stop anything from occurring with the millions of guns that already exist.
We certainly shouldn’t arm teachers or have armed guards at schools. That certainly wouldn’t end well.
There are grieving parents, siblings and relatives in Uvalde and angry citizens too. These measures might appease some of that anger in the short term. But a long-term plan needs to be in place as well.
“I told Mark that I talked to Dr. Harrell and he told me we needed about $1 million to be able to implement some measures to make our schools here safer,” McElroy said. “Mark, said, ‘Let’s do it.’
“In all the years that I played for the Raiders, this organization took care of me and my family, and has looked out for the players and all members of the Raiders family. …The Raiders organization has a proud tradition of doing for other people in need. I know that Al would be proud of this contribution made by Mark and the organization today.”
It would be great to know who McElroy and school superintendent Dr. Harrell consulted with on deciding doors, fences, and cameras were the best course of action.
Maintenance and upkeep of these additional pieces of infrastructure will also cost. Assuming that will come out of the budget, has that been properly accounted for?
Davis’ donation comes on the heels of the U.S. Department of Education releasing of $1.5 million in emergency funds to the school district. Will that money be used for security measures as well?
Kudos to Davis for stepping up and helping the extended Raiders family in Uvalde. Let’s hope the people in charge of managing next steps like Dr. Harrell and the district leadership will engage with all the right parties to ensure the best plans are implemented with that money.
