Emma Gonzalez
| Emma Gonzalez | |
|---|---|
| Born | c. 1999/2000 (age 24–25) |
| 🏳️ Nationality | American |
| 🏫 Education | Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School (2013–2018) |
| 💼 Occupation | Activist |
| 📆 Years active | 2013–present |
Emma Gonzalez (Spanish pronunciation: [ɣonˈsales], also spelled González; born c. 1999/2000) is an American activist and advocate for gun control.[1][2][3] She survived the February 2018 Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida.[4]
Early life and education[edit]
Gonzalez is from Florida. Her parents are Cuban immigrants.[5] Gonzalez's mother is a math tutor and her father, Jose, is an attorney.[6][7]
Gonzalez is expected to graduate from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, in the spring of 2018. Prior to the shooting, she had plans on attending a local college to study science.[6] In a project by astronomy students to launch a weather balloon and an attached craft into space, Gonzalez was the tracking team leader.[8]
Advocacy[edit]
On February 18, 2018, Gonzalez, a senior at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, gave a speech in front of the Broward County Courthouse at a gun control rally in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.[9] The speech was in reaction to the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting at which a gunman killed 17 and severely injured many more.[2]
In the speech she pledged to work with her peers to pressure lawmakers to change the law.[4] The speech featured a call and response: "We call BS," in response to gun laws, calling for advocacy and empowering young people to speak out against school shootings.[10][11] According to The Washington Post, Gonzalez's speech became emblematic of the "new strain of furious advocacy" that sprung up immediately after the shooting.[1]
Gonzalez's speech appeared on YouTube and quickly went viral.[2][12] Gonzalez had been invited, along with other students, to speak at the rally by a school official.[13] Gonzalez was emotional in her delivery, often holding back tears, with the speech reflecting the trauma of the event and the outrage at gun violence in schools in the United States.[14]
In her speech, described as "scathing", she criticized lawmakers and President Donald Trump for receiving money from the National Rifle Association:[15]
If the President wants to ... tell me to my face that it was a terrible tragedy ... I'm going to happily ask him how much money he received from the National Rifle Association. ... Thirty million dollars. And divided by the number of gunshot victims in the United States in the one and one-half months in 2018 alone, that comes out to being $5,800. Is that how much these people are worth to you, Trump?
— Emma Gonzalez[2]
Gonzalez is one of the teenage leaders of a protest movement against gun violence in the United States.[16][17]
The people in the government who are voted into power are lying to us ... And us kids seem to be the only ones who notice and are prepared to call B.S.
— Emma Gonzalez[4]
Gonzalez has continued to speak out as part of a nationwide movement against gun violence by students, which includes a school walkout on April 20, 2018, the 19th anniversary of the Columbine High School massacre.[18] She and fellow survivors spoke with Florida state legislators in Tallahassee on February 20, 2018. The students also plan on attending and speaking at a town hall hosted by CNN on February 21, 2018.[6] Gonzalez, along with fellow student and activist David Hogg, criticized the National Rifle Association as well as politicians who accept money from it, as being complicit in the shootings, and stated that "you're either funding the killers, or you're standing with the children."[19]
In addition to launching the #NeverAgain movement,[20], more specifically group Never Again MSD, which stands for Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, the students are participating in the March 24, 2018 nationwide protest called March for Our Lives.[21]
Gonzalez pressed National Rifle Association representative Dana Loesch to clarify her position on guns.[22]
Criticism[edit]
Gonzalez was criticized for her Fort Lauderdale, Florida speech by many in the political right wing of American politics and press.[9][23] Gonzalez has also faced derogatory comments made by internet trolls about her sexual orientation, short hair, and skin color.[24][17]
Critics of the speeches have falsely accused the students, including Gonzalez, of being crisis actors. Benjamin Kelly, an aide to Florida state Rep. Shawn Harrison (R-Tampa), was fired after making such statements.[9][25]
Personal life[edit]
Gonzalez identifies as bisexual and is the current president of the gay–straight alliance at her high school.[26] According to Vogue, Gonzalez's buzz cut is not a reaction to the school shooting.[27]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Horton, Alex (18 February 2018). "Advice from a survivor of the Florida school shooting: It's time to start ignoring Trump". The Washington Post.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "Florida student Emma Gonzalez to lawmakers and gun advocates: 'We call BS'" (Includes video and transcript). CNN. 17 February 2018.
- ↑ "Florida survivors to march on Washington". BBC News. 18 February 2018.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Bailey, Jason M. (18 February 2018). "Emma González Leads a Student Outcry on Guns: 'This Is the Way I Have to Grieve'". The New York Times.
- ↑ "Así es Emma Gonzalez, hija de cubanos y rostro de las protestas estudiantiles en Estados Unidos". CiberCuba (in español). 2018-02-20. Retrieved 2018-02-22.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Aradillas, Elaine (20 February 2018). "How Emma Gonzalez' World Has Changed Since the Mass Shooting In Her School". People.
- ↑ Milne, Oliver (2018-02-17). "Emotional Florida student in tears as she calls out Trump at gun control rally". Mirror. Retrieved 2018-02-23.
- ↑ A lawmaker’s aide called school-shooting survivors crisis actors. Within hours, he was fired. By Marwa Eltagouri, Washington Post, February 20, 2018
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Rabin, Charles (20 February 2018). "Parkland students face new attack, this time from the political right on social media". Miami Herald.
- ↑ Cohen, Travis (19 February 2018). "This Is What Righteousness Sounds Like: The Importance of Emma González". Miami New Times.
- ↑ Witt, Emily (18 February 2018). "Calling B.S. in Parkland, Florida". The New Yorker.
- ↑ "Future President? WATCH as Florida School Shooting Survivor, Emma Gonzalez, Goes Viral As She Tells Donald Trump and the NRA "Shame on You!"". Latina. 18 February 2018.
- ↑ Aradillas, Elaine (19 February 2018). "School Shooting Survivor Emma Gonzalez Speaks Out: "We Don't Want These People in Charge Anymore"". People.
- ↑ Moore, Suzanne (19 February 2018). "After Florida, I had lost hope. Then I saw Emma González | Suzanne Moore". The Guardian.
- ↑ Ewing, Michelle (18 February 2018). "WATCH: Florida school shooting survivor Emma Gonzalez slams politicians, NRA in emotional speech". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
- ↑ Hayes, Christal (17 February 2018). "Emma Gonzalez survived the Florida shooting. Now she's taking on Trump and the NRA". USA Today.
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 Bendix, Trish (2018-02-22). "Emma González Is The Bisexual Latinx Teen Leading The Charge For Gun Control". INTO. Retrieved 2018-02-23.
- ↑ Todd, Chuck; Gonzalez, Emma; Kasky, Cameron; Hogg, David; Wind, Alex; Corin, Jaclyn. "Full Students Interview: 'Attention is on us now'" (Video interview). Meet the Press. NBC News.
- ↑ Axios, February 19, 2018, student: Politicians accepting NRA money are against shooting victims, Retrieved February 22, 2018, "... shooting survivors Emma Gonzalez and David Hogg returned to the air ... to advocate for gun control legislation and blame the NRA as well as politicians who accept money from the organization....Gonzalez: "You're either funding the killers, or you're standing with the children." ... "
- ↑ Witt, Emily (19 February 2018). "How the Survivors of Parkland Began the Never Again Movement". The New Yorker.
- ↑ Aggeler, Madeleine (20 February 2018). "Change Never Happens Until Young People Like Emma González Demand It". The Cut. New York.
- ↑ CNN, Emma Gonzalez questions NRA spokeswoman: At a CNN town hall following the Parkland school shooting, survivor Emma Gonzalez presses National Rifle Association spokeswoman Dana Loesch on the NRA's stance on banning the purchase of semi-automatic and fully automatic weapons., Retrieved February 22, 2018, "...survivor Emma Gonzalez presses National Rifle Association spokeswoman Dana Loesch on the NRA's stance...."
- ↑ Wilson, Jason (20 February 2018). "How rightwing media is already attacking Florida teens speaking out". The Guardian.
- ↑ "Shooting survivors endure new assault - from online trolls". WBNS-10TV Columbus, Ohio. 2018-02-22. Retrieved 2018-02-23.
- ↑ Eltagouri, Marwa (20 February 2018). "A Florida lawmaker's aide called school-shooting survivors 'actors.' Within hours, he was fired". Chicago Tribune.
- ↑ Lowery, Wesley (2018-02-21). "Emma González hated guns before. Now, she's speaking out on behalf of her dead classmates". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2018-02-22.
- ↑ Van Paris, Calvin (2018-02-22). "Emma González Shares Why "Baldies Get the Job Done" With an Empowering Twitter Video". Vogue. Retrieved 2018-02-22.
External links[edit]
- Emma Gonzalez on TwitterLua error in Module:WikidataCheck at line 23: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).
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