Are Christian Schools Being Targeted? What Data from 2024 Shootings Shows
December 16, 2024
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What’s New
The school shooting at Abundant Life Christian School raised concerns on social media about Christian schools being targeted by gun violence. Data shows that it is the second shooting at a religious school this year resulting in injuries or deaths.
Why It Matters
Posts alleging that Christian schools are being targeted have emerged on X following a shooting at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin, on Monday. A teacher and a teenage student were killed in the shooting. Multiple students were injured, including two facing life-threatening injuries.
The suspected shooter, a 17-year-old female student at the school, was found at the scene, having apparently taken her own life, according to the Associated Press, which cited law enforcement.
Emergency vehicles are parked outside the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wis., where multiple injuries were reported following a shooting, December 16, 2024. A student and a teacher were killed in the shooting and… Emergency vehicles are parked outside the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wis., where multiple injuries were reported following a shooting, December 16, 2024. A student and a teacher were killed in the shooting and the suspected shooter was found dead at the scene.
AP Photo/Scott Bauer
What To Know
Education Week reported 39 school shootings resulting in injuries or deaths this year.
All but one other of the reported shootings happened at public schools.
On December 4, 56-year-old Glenn Litton opened fire at Feather River Adventist School in Oroville, California. Two children, both kindergarten students, were injured in the shooting. Litton was found dead at the scene from what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Officials said Litton attended a Seventh-Day Adventist school in Paradise as a child and may have had a family member who attended the Feather River school years ago. Authorities do not believe he had any current connection to the school.
Officials found a statement believed to be written by Litton stating that “child executions” were imposed at the school in response to “America’s involvements in genocide and oppression of Palestinians” and attacks in Yemen. He also said he was attacking the school on behalf of the “International Alliance,” but officials did not find any evidence of the organization’s existence.
What People Are Saying
Former congressional candidate Jack Lombardi II, on X: “Will this horrible shooting be considered a hate crime or are we going to act like Christians are not being targeted! The children and [families] are in our heart [sic] and prayers.”
Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers, in a statement: “There are no words to describe the devastation and heartbreak we feel today after the school shooting at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison this morning.”
Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway, at Monday afternoon press conference: “If anyone needs mental health support as a result of this incident and the coverage of it, I encourage them to reach out to 988, by phone or text and to get the mental health support that they need.”
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