Broken Homes, Unbroken Silence

Social Outcries Following Shootings Miss the Mark

On the morning of December 16, 2024, 15-year-old Natalie Rupnow opened fire at Abundant Life Christian School, a small K–12 school in Madison, Wisconsin. In the space of a few minutes, she killed a student and a teacher and wounded many others before apparently turning the gun on herself. Two guns were recovered, and at the time of this writing, police are not releasing information as to where or how she obtained them. Of note is the fact that she is female. In a 20-year review of active shootings, the FBI identified 333 incidents and 345 shooters. Of these, only 13 were women.¹

Boilerplate Reactions

In the immediate aftermath, the media focused on the usual suspects when it comes to...