Best Practices: Quick Reference
Recommended |
Not Recommended |
Use “Together Highland Park Unidos.” |
Avoid using “Fuerza Highland Park Strong.” |
Use “Highland Park shooting.” |
Avoid “July 4 shooting,” “July 4 parade shooting,” or other terms that connect the incident to the holiday. |
Refer to the passage of time without emotional language. |
Avoid creating “anniversaries” by unduly investing emotional time and effort into dates; keep emotions focused on people. |
Recognize that individuals have unique experiences of the same event, which they will process in different ways. |
Avoid words or phrases that set expectations for how someone is doing or how they “should be” doing. |
Understand that the response to news/information and whether (and how) to engage is up to each individual person. |
Don’t share content related to the shooting, investigation, or court proceedings without a content warning. |
Use words that emphasize that everyone is on a different path. Avoid phrases that are unnecessarily emotional. Keep reading for a list of phrases to swap for common but problematic sayings. |
Don’t assume everyone is in a position to discuss the shooting, especially individuals in service professions (such as stylists) where they may frequently hear from multiple people about their experiences of trauma. |
Check in with friends or family to see if they have the bandwidth to discuss the shooting or any emotional, weighty, or traumatizing topic. |
Avoid jumping into conversations about the shooting without giving others a heads up. Avoid discussing these topics with casual acquaintances or captive audiences (such as hair stylists.) |
Manage media consumption and take breaks if needed. |
Don’t feel compelled to share or engage with these topics even if your friend group is doing so. |