Donald Trump’s response to the mass shooting that killed 17 teachers and students at the Parkland’s Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School this week has been viewed as lackluster by many — from his initial tweeted thoughts on the tragedy, to addressing it without ever mentioning the word “gun” and his hospital visit where he cheerily posed with victims. The president’s candor has not gone unnoticed by survivors of the massacre, who have been vocal in advocating for gun control in the days that have since passed.
One such remarkable young lady is Emma Gonzalez, a Marjorie Stoneman Douglas senior who stood behind a podium at an anti-gun rally in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida on Saturday afternoon to give an emotional and moving speech, telling the crowd: “We will be the last mass shooting.”
At one point during her speech, Gonzalez turned her attention directly to Trump, delivering a fiery condemnation of his association with the NRA:
“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 have never have happened, and maintain telling us how nothing is going to be done about it, I’m gonna happily ask him how much money he received from the National Rifle Association … You wanna know something? It doesn’t matter because I already know: 30 million dollars.”
She continued, “To every politician who has taken donations from the NRA, shame on you,” which prompted the crowd to chant back at her, “Shame on you! Shame on you!”
Words honestly do not do her speech justice. I have a feeling this won’t be the last we’ll be hearing from Emma Gonzalez.