Our Sunday Visitor: Empty school desks on Minnesota Capitol grounds signify children lost to gun violence

ST. PAUL, Minn. (OSV News) — They were preparing for three days of presence and legislative testimony as they seek gun safety laws. The desks represented more than 200 Minnesota children lost to gun violence since 2021, the group said.

Jackie Flavin — the mother of Harper Moyski, a 10-year-old student who died in an Aug. 27 shooting during an all-school Mass at Annunciation Church in south Minneapolis — helped spearhead the lobbying effort through an organization of parents called Annunciation Light Alliance.

Two school desks inside Capitol

The shooting also took the life of 8-year-old Fletcher Merkel and wounded more than a dozen other students and three adults. In their honor, Flavin set up two desks inside the Capitol building: one for her daughter and one for Fletcher, with their backpacks and school-related things. She included her daughter’s photo, a soccer ball, slip-on shoes, papers and a pencil cup.

Flavin’s husband, Mike Moyski, also helped set up the desks in 20-degree weather on the snow-filled Capitol grounds. The desks were expected to be in place through Feb. 26.

“My hope is that all this brings some meaning into the big decisions that are being made as the (legislative) session takes shape Feb. 17 through May,” Moyski told The Catholic Spirit, newspaper of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. “We hope that as legislators — Democrat, Republican, whatever it might be — as they walk in and enter the session every morning, they see … the impact” gun violence “has on communities and families and think about what they’re doing.”

‘Not just for legislators to see’

“And just one other thing,” Moyski said. “It’s not just for the legislators to see this and find some meaning. I think it’s also for all of our kids who have been through something at a young age they should never have (had) to. To see that somebody’s out here doing something about it and that there can be some light amongst all the darkness.”

In addition to testimony, Annunciation students in grades six through eight participated in a sing-along in the Capitol rotunda Feb. 24. Another sing-along was planned for Feb. 26 with Annunciation students in grades three through five.

“We gather in song and shared humanity to bring care and presence into the space where public decisions are made,” said a flyer advertising what Annunciation Light Alliance billed as “Minnesota Sing Together” community gatherings.

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‘Help keep our kids safe’

Lisa Shepherd, communications director for the alliance, said its members hope to “get all the right people at the right table. It doesn’t matter who you are, what you believe in, just come up with the right solution to keep our kids safe at the end of the day.”

On Feb. 24, Gov. Tim Walz, who urged a special session to address gun violence shortly after the shooting at Annunciation, announced what he called a comprehensive gun violence prevention package.

The proposals included banning military-style assault rifles and high-capacity magazines; requiring safe storage and reporting of lost or stolen firearms; not allowing Minnesotans to possess guns without serial numbers; implementing a firearm insurance requirement; establishing a firearm and ammunition tax; and expanding early intervention resources, including school resources, to prevent gun violence.

Three-tiered approach to gun violence

The Minnesota Catholic Conference — the public policy arm of the state’s Catholic bishops — has suggested a three-tiered approach to gun violence in this legislative session.

Its proposals include banning high-capacity ammunition magazines and expanding safe schools funding to at least $100 per student in state aid while extending eligibility to nonpublic, charter and tribal schools. 

The Catholic conference also suggests increasing state aid and school-board approved levy authority to ensure school districts have sustainable resources to meet safety needs; and stopping the harms of addictive social media by requiring parental consent for children under 16 years old to join social media platforms. If consent is given, the legislation would prohibit targeted advertising and addictive features and require privacy settings for children that help parents monitor and limit use.

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Read the full article at Our Sunday Visitor.