On Thursday’s CNN Newsroom, host Ana Cabrera and pediatric trauma surgeon Dr. Chethan Sathya claimed the country needs “an Emmett Till moment” in order to do something about “these automatic weapons.”
The Till reference comes from an op-ed in the Washington Post from former Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, which Cabrera read from, “in order for change to happen, we need an Emmett Till moment. Johnson writes in part this -- and I'm quoting here – ‘I lack the moral standing to tell a parent to accept and approve for the greater good the public display of photos of his or her dead child, nor do I suggest the release of any images in particular, but something graphic is required to awaken the public to the real horror of these repeated tragedies.’”
Till was brutally membered and dismembered in a racist attack while his body was left to sink in a river. Here, Johnson and CNN are talking about punishing innocent people for someone else’s crimes.
Cabrera then introduced Sathya and declared “This is such an important discussion” and asked “What do you think about what the secretary there wrote about this idea of people seeing with their own eyes what it looks like, a gunshot wound in a child? Do people need to see what you see?”
Sathya did agree, “One hundred percent. This has been something that we’ve been seeing as physicians, trauma surgeons for decades, right? You know, we are talking right now about mass shootings. We're talking about children being killed. This is something we see on a daily basis.”
He also claimed that “the devastation that these automatic weapons cause, these assault rifles, is just, you know, -- it's harrowing.”
If CNN is going to advocate for certain policies, the bare minimum that should be excepted of them is that they get basic terminology correct, but by referencing automatic weapons, they failed to do that.
The same CNN that refuses to have an honest conversation about the nature of abortion wants to shame Americans into supporting gun control with gore.
CNN also managed to be somehow worse than MSNBC’s segment on the same topic. Andrea Mitchell interviewed Johnson and at least managed to show a video of a Parkland father saying he does not want photos of his dead daughter released. Johnson could only reply that different people can come to different conclusions.
This segment was sponsored by AARP.
Here is a transcript of the June 2 show:
CNN Newsroom with Ana Cabrera
6/2/2022
1:13 PM ET
ANA CABRERA: In a new op-ed, the former Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson argues that, in order for change to happen, we need an Emmett Till moment. Johnson writes in part this -- and I'm quoting here -- "I lack the moral standing to tell a parent to accept and approve for the greater good the public display of photos of his or her dead child, nor do I suggest the release of any images in particular, but something graphic is required to awaken the public to the real horror of these repeated tragedies."
Joining us now is Dr. Chethan Sathya. He is a pediatric trauma surgeon at Cohen Children's Medical Center here in New York. He also serves as director for the Center for Gun Violence Prevention at Northwell Health.
Doctor, thanks so much for being here. This is such an important discussion. You do so much work. You're in service in so many ways and have great experience.
What do you think about what the secretary there wrote about this idea of people seeing with their own eyes what it looks like, a gunshot wound in a child? Do people need to see what you see?
CHETHAN SATHYA: One hundred percent. This has been something that we’ve been seeing as physicians, trauma surgeons for decades, right? You know, we are talking right now about mass shootings. We're talking about children being killed. This is something we see on a daily basis.
Just even at our hospital here in New York, we’ve seen more kids with bullet wounds this year than any other previous year in history. So, it's just devastating. You have to understand that, as trauma surgeons and physicians, we see parents coming in with their kids, bleeding bullet wounds, with their bodies ripped apart. And the devastation that these automatic weapons cause, these assault rifles, is just, you know, -- it's harrowing.
