Demolition began Monday at First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, the site of the deadliest shooting in United States history, according to the Associated Press (AP).
In November 2017, 26 worshippers were tragically killed in a mass shooting at First Baptist Church when gunman Devin Patrick Kelley opened fire. Authorities said the shooting was the result of a domestic dispute involving Kelley, who later died after a self-inflicted bullet, and his mother-in-law, who at times attended church facilities but was unable to attend the massacre.
A year and a half after the shooting, a new church was completed for the congregation. However, debates persisted over the fate of the other site that served as a reminder of that fateful day.
According to the AP, demolition crews moved to the site, tearing down the small shrine.
The destruction of the building marked the end of the long debate on the web about the fate of the site. For about six years, church members and the wider network debated whether to keep the building as a memorial or demolish it.
In 2021, First Baptist members voted to demolish the structure, despite opposition from some families of those affected who sought to maintain the site.
The debate eventually reached the courts, and a Texas ruling temporarily halted the demolition this summer with a restraining order after responding to a request from the warring parties for demolition.
Last month, another ruling denied the order’s extension, paving the way for the demolition, as the church’s lawyers argued in their court filings that the construction had “a constant and very painful reminder” of the tragedy, the AP reported.
The debate over what to do with mass shooting sites is a larger struggle that communities across the country continue to face after lives have been lost.
According to Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund, an independent, nonpartisan organization committed to reducing gun violence in the United States, more than 19,000 people were killed or injured by gunfire in the United States in a mass shooting in the 8 years between 2015 and 2022.
Newsweek reached out to Everytown’s email on Monday for comment.
In Parkland, Florida, demolition began last month of the building where another 17 people were killed in the 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
The demolition of Parkland came after former scholars of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School made a strong call in 2022 for the school to be demolished after the jury sentenced Nikolas Cruz, the shooter, to life in prison.
Similarly, the elementary school in Sandy Hook, Connecticut, was demolished and rebuilt after the 2012 shooting that claimed the lives of 26 people.
Additionally, on May 24, 2022, a gunman killed 21 other people at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. Shortly after the shooting, many local officials and parents called for the school to be destroyed.
“Robb Elementary, we’re not going back to that campus in any form. There will be no school staff on that campus as we move forward,” Hal Harrell, superintendent of the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District, said in June. “As for the long-term of this site, there are ongoing discussions about what it will look like. As we move forward as a network, we’ll have insight into what it’s going to look like for our network. “
Natalie Venegas is a weekend reporter at Newsweek in New York. She focuses on education, social justice issues, physical care, crime and politics, while she specializes in marginalized and underrepresented communities. Before joining Newsweek in 2023, Natalie worked with news publications such as Adweek, Al Día and Austin Monthly Magazine. She graduated with a degree in journalism from the University of Texas at Austin. You can contact Natalie by emailing n. venegas@newsweek. com
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