In times of tragedy, I turn to words. I can’t speak my thoughts coherently, so I write them instead.

It’s all over the news and socials that nine people are dead in the community of Tumbler Ridge, BC due to a school shooting. The kind that happen seemingly weekly in the USA. That rarely happen in Canada.

I currently live about an hour and a half from there, in Dawson Creek. It is part of the Peace Region and when one of our communities suffer, we all suffer with them. My job means I have ties to the community, and people that were there when it happened. I cannot even fathom what they went through, and what the kids, teens, and adults on the other side of the wall went through.

And as much as the Peace Region supports one another, it’s also a cesspool when it comes to online hatred and everyone here knows it. I’m not in any of the community Facebook groups for a reason but holy shit, those bigots have been in fine form since yesterday. You can’t avoid it; the keyboard warriors will type whatever vile thought lives in their brains and willingly let others know exactly what they’re thinking, whether their opinion was asked for or not.

Nine people are dead that were alive yesterday. That’s where the focus should be. We are never going to know why the person who did this chose to do so, because they are also dead. We will likely never get the answers we need and people need to accept that. Speculating online doesn’t help anyone, and you’re just feeding the hate machine.

Minority groups are always targeted in incidents like this, and I refuse to feed that beast. We don’t know what the shooter’s gender identity, race, religious affiliation, or sexual orientation is, and sharing half-assed images on the socials doesn’t help anyone. Being first without being correct is means you’re not a credible source and you should keep your damn mouth shut.

I know it’s hard to wait for information in a society that thrives on instant gratification. Social media was a mistake and I understand the irony of that statement as I go to share this post on those sites. Doesn’t change the fact that a digital world is not necessarily a better one.

I’m going to go be with my people now. Take care of yourselves, and each other.

-A.