Kansas City mayor slams the ‘fetishization’ of guns after shooting of Black teen

Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas (D) on Sunday slammed the media and politicians for drumming up a “culture of fear and paranoia,” arguing that and the “fetishization” of guns played into the shooting of a Black teen who went to the wrong home in the Missouri city.

Ralph Yarl, 16, was shot twice by Andrew Lester, 84, police say, after going to the wrong address to pick up his younger brothers. The case has sparked national attention, igniting old debates over guns and race in the U.S.

Lucas, who has been city’s mayor since 2019, said the shooting was the result of a “culture of fear and paranoia” propagated by some in the media and lawmakers.

“We have this… fetishization of guns,” Lucas said on CBS’s “Face The Nation.” “More ‘Stand Your Ground’ laws, more laws that say you should use your gun and have it absolutely everywhere.”

“This was an 84-year-old man who went to sleep in one of the safest neighborhoods of Kansas City, but still had a loaded gun,” Lucas said, referring to Lester. “And when he heard a disturbance at his door, the first thing he thought to do wasn’t just to brandish, it wasn’t just even to say a word or scream at somebody who would be outside. It was to shoot, and to shoot twice.”

Yarl was shot in the head at point-blank range but survived the shooting. He has received an outpouring of support, including a call from President Biden. 

But the shooting has also sharpened political divisions, with the attack sparking debate over gun control and politics of race.

“I think this is a serious situation and the real politicization are the people who after each one of these incidents say ‘Let’s blame it on mental health, let’s blame it on society,’ ” Lucas said on CBS.