Andy Murray 'Angry' About Uvalde School Shooting, Recalls Surviving 1996 Dunblane Massacre
MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP via Getty Andy Murray
Andy Murray is calling for a change in America following the Uvalde, Texas, school shooting last week.
The Scottish tennis star, 35, recently spoke to BBC Sports about how the tragedy — in which 19 children and two teachers were killed — makes him "incredibly upset," especially having lived through a school shooting himself.
"It's unbelievably upsetting and it makes you angry. I think there's been over 200 mass shootings in America this year and nothing changes," he told the outlet. "I can't understand that. That shouldn't be happening to children and parents shouldn't have to send their children to school and feel worried about something like that happening."
"My feeling is that surely at some stage you do something different," Murray added, noting that he doesn't understand gun control being considered a political subject. "You can't keep approaching the problem by buying more guns and having more guns in the country. I don't see how that solves it. But I could be wrong. Let's maybe try something different and see if you get a different outcome."
Brandon Bell/Getty Images Robb Elementary School
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The athlete then likened the Uvalde shooting to his own experience as a child. Murray, who grew up in Dunblane, Scotland, was 9 years old when a gunman entered his elementary school and opened fire, killing 16 children and one teacher before fatally shooting himself. Today, the 1996 Dunblane Massacre remains Britain's deadliest mass shooting.
"I heard something on the radio the other day and it was a child from that school," Murray told BBC. "I experienced a similar thing when I was at Dunblane, a teacher coming out and waving all of the children under tables and telling them to go and hide."
"And it was a kid telling exactly the same story about how she survived it," he said. "They were saying that they go through these drills, as young children ... How? How is that normal that children should be having to go through drills, in case someone comes into a school with a gun? I don't get it. It's really, really upsetting and I hope they make some changes."
The Uvalde shooting occurred at Robb Elementary School and is now the second-deadliest school shooting in United States history. It comes nearly a decade after the December 2012 shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, which killed 26.
Along with Murray, many other sports leaders have been vocal about the need for change following the deadly incident.
Gabe Kapler, San Francisco Giants manager, told reporters that he does not plan on participating in the United States' national anthem on the field for the foreseeable future, citing the Uvalde school shooting as his reason and criticizing those in positions of power.
"I don't plan on coming out for the anthem going forward until I feel better about the direction of our country," Kapler, 46, said, as seen in video footage shared by ESPN. "I don't expect it to move the needle necessarily, it's just something that I feel strongly enough about to take that step."
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Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr also got emotional and called on politicians to take action following the tragedy. In a press conference before the Warriors played the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Western Conference finals, Kerr said he wouldn't be discussing basketball, stating, "Any basketball questions don't matter."
"Since we left shootaround, 14 children were killed 400 miles from here, and a teacher," Kerr said in a video shared on the Warriors' official Twitter page, his voice noticeably becoming shaky while he appeared to hold back tears.
The winning coach then referenced the Buffalo, New York, tragedy where 10 Black people were killed in a mass shooting at a local grocery store and a shooting at a Laguna Woods, California, church that left one person dead and four people critically injured — both of which had happened in the last 10 days, as Kerr noted.
"When are we gonna do something?" he continued. "I'm tired. I'm so tired of getting up here and offering condolences to the devastated families that are out there. I'm so tired of the – I'm sorry – I'm tired of the moments of silence. Enough."
The school district in Uvalde has opened an official account with First State Bank of Uvalde to support Robb Elementary families affected by the tragedy. People can send checks through the mail (payable to the "Robb School Memorial Fund") or donate money through Zelle to robbschoolmemorialfund@gmail.com. People can also donate by calling 830-356-2273.
