One year ago, on Valentine's Day, a horrific tragedy forever changed Broward County at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Seventeen innocent lives were taken at a place that you are supposed to feel most comfortable on a day you are supposed to feel most loved. Valentine's day, a day you are supposed to spend with your loved ones and people you most care about. But many loved ones were ripped out of fathers, mothers, girlfriends, boyfriends, best friends, grandparent's arms on this day.
"Everybody thinks this gets easier as time goes on," Fred Guttenberg told Rolling Stone of his 14-year-old daughter, Jaime. "It actually doesn't. It gets harder because every day there's just going to be a new reminder of what you lost."
Since then, countless Douglas students rose up and spoke up about issues in politics and the need for school safety when hosting The March for Our lives March in Washington D.C. in front of the capitol building on March 24th, 2018. A moment in history this nation and I will never forget. The students of Marjory Stoneman did not stop here, they made this moment a movement. During this past summer, they toured the United States and advocated for citizens to go out and vote. In their mission statement, it says,
"Not one more. We cannot allow one more person to be killed by senseless gun violence. We cannot allow one more person to experience the pain of losing a loved one. We cannot allow one more family to wait for a call or text that never comes. We cannot allow the normalization of gun violence to continue. We must create a safe and compassionate nation for our youth to grow up in."
Recently, another Broward Sherriff's Office deputy that responded to the shooting got his badge ripped off of him for how he responded. Joshua Stambaugh is accused of neglect of duty and not meeting BSO standards. After an investigation, it was said that Joshua, after hearing five gunshots did not go to seek the shooter, instead, he stayed in his vehicle during this occurrence. He was not the only one that was suspended from his job, several other Broward County officers were suspended as well because of their botched response during this tragic mass shooting.
Since the shooting that occurred there has been signs of progression within our nation, may be slowly getting there but with the passionate students and parents within the community and their hard work, it will get there. Although one year later the students, faculties, and people apart of this movement turned this tragedy and sadness into a fight for our countries' future this does not make it any easier that seventeen innocent lives were lost. No one should ever have to go through the trauma that the students and faculty of Stoneman Douglas had to go through.
"Every day since March 24th, 2018, we have been expanding our coalitions and working with new advocates in order to create a movement that ends the violence and elects morally just leaders into office. We will not stop our advocacy until we see the change we demand." — March for Our Lives
