Photos are always a great way to tell a story, but if it’s a tragedy like Uvalde, Texas shooting, those photos can lead to much-needed action.

The community of Uvalde is trying to pick up the pieces after a gunman killed 19 children and two teachers at an elementary school in Texas.

According to officials, Salvador Rolando Ramos crashed his truck into a ditch near the school, grabbed his AR-15-style semi-automatic rifle, and began shooting at people standing outside of a funeral home.

He eventually made his way into the elementary school that housed second, third, and fourth-graders, where he shot at two Uvalde police officers, leaving both injured. Ramos then ran inside a classroom, locked the door, and began shooting students and teachers.

After the shooting, residents from the neighborhood came together for a vigil Wednesday night at the town’s fairgrounds.

Prayers and tears filled the room as parents held their children and loved ones tightly. The tragic shooting has led to more questions than answers, leaving many parents frustrated, confused, and heartbroken.

Uvalde School Shooting Investigation Spotlights ‘Unprepared’ Police Response

A new article from the Associated Press suggests that the heavily armed Ramos not only encountered an alleged school resource officer in the still-not fully explained moments leading up to the shooting outside of the school who also inexplicably did not prevent him from entering the building.

Witness Juan Carranza, who lives across the street from the school, told the Associated Press that he suggested to the growing crowd that they storm the school to stop the shooter and said the police settled on a more passive response.

“Let’s just rush in because the cops aren’t doing anything like they are supposed to,” Carranza recalled saying. “More could have been done.”

He described the police as “unprepared.”

Uvalde School Shooting Comes Days Before NRA Hosts Pro-Gun Texas Republicans

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Sen. Ted Cruz were scheduled to deliver remarks at the National Rifle Association‘s (NRA) annual meeting this weekend in Houston.

Cruz regurgitated the requisite hollow thoughts and prayers that are routinely offered following mass shootings and other tragedies. But absent from Cruz’s tweet — the only public comments the senator made in the immediate aftermath of the shooting — was any sentiment addressing the clear and apparent need for gun control.

Less than a year ago Abbott championed the so-called “constitutional carry” legislation that allows Texans to carry handguns without obtaining a license or securing any gun training.

Texas Republicans Deflect From Inaction On Gun Reform After Uvalde School Shooting

In the hours immediately after a horrific school shooting in Uvalde, Texas Republicans opted to deflect from the clear need for gun reform. Both Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Sen. Ted Cruz doubled down on false narratives about gun reform while passing the buck once again.

When asked to respond to the school shooting at Robb Elementary, Paxton suggested teachers and administrators may need to be armed and prepared to “respond quickly.” Except there’s no evidence that a good guy with a gun mentality would save lives.

Below are pictures from the tragic aftermath.