Zoe Weisman, a Brown student who survived the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida, in 2018, insisted “no one is safe” from such events “until our Congresspeople actually decide to do something and care about children.”
Saturday’s shooting at the Ivy League school in Rhode Island is the second Weisman has endured.
“There’s already students who survived the school shooting in Oxford and Michigan and then went to Michigan State and survived another school shooting, she said. “This isn’t a new phenomenon, and we’re going to get to a point where there’s people like myself who have survived two of these.”
Weisman also called out the Trump administration’s response to the tragedy.
“It’s honestly laughable. This administration was the same one that was in power when the shooting in Parkland happened, and they said the same exact thing,” she insisted. “They sent their thoughts and prayers and told us that they were thinking of us. Clearly they weren’t.”
She continued, “If they actually cared about us, and they were actually praying for us, and they actually wanted us to do well, they would do something to end the gun violence problem in this country. And I think a lot of my fellow students can agree with that, that we’re fed up with the current administration and Congress’ inaction.”
Weisman also reflected on her mental state following the attack.
“I think mentally, you know, I feel like I’m 12 again. This just feels exactly like how I felt in 2018, but honestly, I’m really angry. I’m really angry that this is happening to me all over again, and I’m just in shock.”
The shooting at Brown was followed by a second mass shooting in Sydney, Australia, that left at least 12 people dead and scores more injured.
