“We will be the last mass shooting.”
Emma Gonzales’ face is likely to have been all over your newsfeed today and over the weekend.
The teenager went viral for her impassioned speech on gun control in the wake of the latest mass shooting in the US.
But who is she?
Emma is student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, and lost a number classmates last Wednesday, Valentine’s day.
Seventeen people died and more than a dozen were injured after being shot by a gunman at the school.
Former student Nikolas Cruz was arrested after the incident and is in police custody.
Emma, who is in her final year of high school, was in the school’s auditorium when panic broke out.
She assumed it was a drill until first responders told her to run.
“They say, ‘You don’t think about it until it happens’ — I was always thinking about it,” she said.
“And now that it’s happened, there’s nothing that could have possibly made me angrier and more ready to do something.
Emma’s speech
Addressed a crowd of thousands at an anti-gun rally in nearby Fort Lauderdale on Saturday, Emma called ‘BS’ on gun laws.
She singed out President Trump, who she said received $30 million in donations during his campaign for office.
“If the President wants to come up to me and tell me to my face that it was a terrible tragedy and how it should never have happened and maintain telling us how nothing is going to be done about it, I’m going to happily ask him how much money he received from the National Rifle Association.
“To every politician who is taking donations from the NRA, shame on you.”
She also criticised Trump for blaming the shooting on mental health issues rather than guns.
“We need to pay attention to the fact that this was not just a mental health issue.
“He would not have harmed that many students with a knife.
So many signs that the Florida shooter was mentally disturbed, even expelled from school for bad and erratic behavior. Neighbors and classmates knew he was a big problem. Must always report such instances to authorities, again and again!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 15, 2018
Commitment to ‘change the law’
“We are going to be the kids you read about in textbooks,” Emma said.
“We are going to be the last mass shooting… We are going to change the law.”
Emma said the students of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High would lead the charge to ensure gun laws become stricter.
“The students who are dead, the students still in the hospital, the student now suffering PTSD, the students who had panic attacks during the vigil because the helicopters would not leave us alone, hovering over the school for 24 hours a day.”
The reaction
Played out on social media and by news channels around the world, Emma’s speech soon went viral.
Her named trended on Twitter as high profile names lauded her words.
May #EmmaGonzalez‘s words be out rallying cry. We must make it unacceptable for politicians who take money from the NRA to stay in office. Register and in November vote them out. Too many have died. #Parkland pic.twitter.com/4wjiLmHrOc
— Laverne Cox (@Lavernecox) February 18, 2018
Be quiet and go watch this high school student call you and your entire crew of corrupt cronies out on national television. She’s demonstrating what actual courage and leadership looks like. Learn something. #emmagonzalez https://t.co/FtmLbmwdmv
— Patrick J Adams (@halfadams) February 17, 2018
We are with you Emma Gonzalez ✊? https://t.co/M62MbgwiVm
— Alicia Keys (@aliciakeys) February 19, 2018
@Emma4Change Emma, your speech was a battle cry. You and your generation are going to succeed where we have failed. I am grateful for your strength & voice & determination, and I stand with you, and in awe of you. ?? #EmmaGonzalez #StayStrong #NeverAgain
— Debra Messing (@DebraMessing) February 19, 2018
Kids like #emmagonzalez will change the world. Listen to her ! https://t.co/yq1nfmUmxf
— Reese Witherspoon (@RWitherspoon) February 18, 2018
