Reviews: Another Day in the Death of America

This book has been out for some time, and was recommended to me by a friend (who still hasn't read it). After the first reading, I was unsure whether to post this as a regular blog, but decided to review it here as it is a very good book, in my opinion, despite the subject matter being "familiar" to us in the UK.

I have been driven to read this book in stages, as I found it shattering to read for a number of reasons, which will hopefully become clear below. I have read it several times, and now feel able to discuss the book.

As I said, deaths by gun violence in the USA are familiar news to us here in the UK and Europe. "Bowling for Columbine", the renowned Michael Moore film, brought home to us the curse of gun murders in the US, focussing primarily upon the Columbine school massacre. Moore's film raised a number of disturbing questions for America, but could not stop similar horrible school mass killings, such as the Sandy Hook school slaughter.

We hear about the mass killings, the most recent - so far - being that at Miami Airport, but not the everyday killings by firearms that happen all over America, and Gary Younge's book deals with ten that happened in just one 24-hour period - November 23rd, 2013. About 60 gun-related deaths happened in America that day, ten of which were of minors. As Younge says:

"It was just another day in America. And as befits an unremarkable Saturday in America, ten children and teens were killed by gunfire."

Ten chapters of this book deal with those young people whose lives were cut short. I found each chapter so disturbing that it was impossible for me to read them all at one sitting, The first that Younge writes about was particularly heartbreaking. Jaiden Dixon, 9-years old of Grove City, Ohio, opened his front door in answer to a knock, only to be shot dead by his brother's father, who was in turn later shot dead by police ("Suicide by Cop").
It got no better, although the other deaths, and the victims, were different. I read of Tyshon Anderson, 18, a Chicago gang member; Samuel Brightmon, 16, a trusting black kid caught in random gunfire in Dallas; Edwin Rajo, 16, an impulsive Honduran whose girlfriend did not realize there was a bullet in the gun’s chamber; and Tyler Dunn, 11, slain accidentally during rural Michigan’s hunting season.
Briefly related, but details of these deaths will stay with me for life. For example, there is the appalling incident that caused the death of Edwin Rajo at the hands of his girlfriend, Camilla. They had just bought a gun, but were inexperienced, not realising what happens with an automatic pistol when you pull the slide back, even if you eject the magazine (clip). Younge again:
"They assumed that because the clip was out the gun was empty. They didn't realise that when he [Edwin] cocked it he'd put a bullet in the chamber...She pressed it against his chest and pulled the trigger. Pop. Then silence. Edwin's eyes widened..."Oh, shit, you shot me", he said. "Oh, sorry", said Camilla".
All ten cases were horrific, but, somehow, Edwin's last words, as well as Camilla's apology, are unforgettable.
This book, however, is more than a description of meaningless killings. It raises the issues that we might expect, particularly that of gun control. What I found shocking was the fact that the relatives of the victims, and other concerned parties, seemed to accept the prevalence of firearms in the USA with resignation. As Younge writes:
  “In virtually every case,on the day on which this book is set, the deaths prompted no broader question about the role of guns, let alone engagement with the issue.”
Even outgoing President Obama has spoken of his frustration in this matter. Conservative elements in Congress, supported by the unbelievably powerful National Rifle Association, have frustrated all efforts at gun control.
The questions of race and poverty are also raised. Seven of the dead were black, while two were Latino and one white. Younge argues that, as so many young black people are trapped in poverty and despair, it is impossible to even begin to improve the situation. He admits:
"Neither poverty nor racism puts a gun in anyone's hand...But they are a starting point for the conditions...in which a gun might be used..."
What the book does not seek to answer is why so many Americans feel the need to arm themselves with firearms against each other, and then feel the urge to use them so readily. A cursory glance at the statistics highlights this question. As the BBC says:
"So many people die annually from gunfire in the US that the death toll between 1968 and 2011 eclipses all wars ever fought by the country. According to research by Politifact, there were about 1.4 million firearm deaths in that period, compared with 1.2 million US deaths in every conflict from the War of Independence to Iraq."
Above, I mention two school shootings that created international concern, yet the BBC says that there were 272 in America in 2015. 13,286 people were killed in the US by firearms in 2015, and 26,819 people were injured. Isis/Daesh must be green with envy at the scale of this slaughter which they can only dream of emulating.
However, this does not distract from the effectiveness and skill with which Gary Younge has written his book. If nothing else, he has rescued the names of ten young people from undeserved obscurity. This book reminds us that there are human tragedies behind murder statistics, whatever country we live in. I recommend this book as a serious and sobering read.

Jaiden Dixon, 9 years old.

Shot dead, 23/11/2013

R.I.P.