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my story
I
couldn’t help but notice chocolates, friends and smiles. Those observations later turned into bullet holes, a shattered classroom door and the fear that I was going to die. I was strolling along hallways filled with couples and smiles across every face I passed by. My day was slowly coming to an end, as I walked alongside my friend Alyssa Alhadeff into fourth period. She was wearing a black and white T-shirt dress — the perfect dress for a perfect day. We laughed and took our seats, practicing for our FSA exam coming up. “Can we just leave?” she said to me. I wish that we had just left. But, we didn’t. We continued writing and laughing — until the sound of bullets and screams came about our classroom. I looked at Alyssa, and she made a face that will never leave my memory. When I saw her expression, I knew something was
Freshman Eden Hebron shares her experience from Feb. 14
wrong. Maybe this was a drill or maybe this was just a weird thought happening in my head. I trusted my instincts, though, and rushed across the door under a table. I spotted Alyssa, across from me. She moved, then took shelter with the others behind my freshman English teacher’s desk. She was kneeling down — exposed. But, we didn’t think much of it. Anyways, we lived in Parkland. I planted myself there, staring at Alyssa and praying that nothing was going on. I was wrong. There was a shooter. And he was slowly but surely approaching my classroom. The sound of an AR-15, the sight of glass in front of me and the sharp sensation of my body clenching to avoid getting killed made it a reality. I twisted my head to see Alyssa collapse as three bullets struck her body. She screamed for her life, but it was not enough. The bullets were too strong and powerful for her body. I called for her. I called, “Alyssa! Alyssa!” but there was nothing else to do. She was just murdered. The shooter didn’t shoot my class once. He came twice. It had felt to me like he was deliberately going after my English class. It had felt like a war between room 1216 and a gunman — a war that I didn’t sign up for. I sat there, thinking I may have just watched Alyssa die, but someone might now watch me die. I was supposed to be next, but I wasn’t. Twenty minutes later, the police came in and yelled at us to run. But, I couldn’t help
but see the aftermath of my classroom. It wasn’t just one victim murdered in my English class. Alex Schachter, Alaina Petty and Alyssa Alhadeff were all writing an essay one minute and the next, they were killed. Seeing my fellow classmates’ bodies was the most terrifying image I have ever seen. I still see those images every day, and I have a hard time imagining a day when I won’t. One week later, I decided that experiencing a mass shooting first-hand had made me want to make a change. I felt like I needed to make a change — like I owed it to them. My views were altered, and my life was changed the minute the gunman brought a weapon of war into room 1216. As a result, my newfound focus became gun control. School safety is critical; mental health is important, but none of that will succeed if we refuse to eliminate the weapons of war. They go hand-in-hand. An AR-15 was used in Las Vegas, Sandy Hook, Pulse nightclub and now our high school. These weapons do not belong in the hands of civilians. Their sole purpose is for killing. It is time that our government recognizes the pattern. Without a semi-automatic weapon, the shooter wouldn’t have been able to shatter the glass of our classroom door to get to my classmates. Without an assault rifle, the shooter wouldn’t have been able to fire 160 rounds of ammunition in the freshman building. Without a semi-automatic weapon, the shooter wouldn’t have been
able to murder 17 innocent souls that day. To those who are fighting for school safety, keep fighting, keep advocating for anything that could’ve saved at least one of our fellow Eagles. What happened on Feb. 14 has become the new America. I refuse to allow any more children to have to watch their friends die. I refuse to allow anyone else to have to prepare for their last moments of life while simply sitting in English class. We will keep marching, fighting and advocating until we succeed in giving citizens what they deserve: to live in a safe environment where they don’t have to worry if this day will be their last. This tragedy has affected me in ways I can’t even explain. But, I can say that I am more determined than ever to be part of this movement that is going to guide generations to come. Feb. 14 was many things. It was the day I lost friends, the day I thought would be my last and the day my life was altered forever. It will always be a part of me; it has become a part of who I am. It has also made me stronger, smarter and committed — committed to make sure that no other community must feel the pain and sorrow that we do. Their names will never be forgotten. For Alyssa, Alex, Alaina, Gina, Luke, Martin, Peter, Scott, Aaron, Chris, Meadow, Joaquin, Jaime, Cara, Helena, Nick and Carmen. We are fighting for you. And we love you, forever. Guest editorial by Eden Hebron
Stronger Together
I
t is easy to misconstrue the meaning of a story once it turns into hearsay, so allow me to first dispel any misconceptions that may have been floating around since I decided that my voice is just as important as that of anyone else’s in this world. I support the #BlackLivesMatter movement, the #NeverAgain movement and any other movement advocating for the lives of innocent people around the world. I am not a separatist, nor am I racist, nor do I seek to “divide” the #NeverAgain movement. I believe that we are all a part of this movement regardless of race, religion or political affiliation, as long as we can acknowledge the fact that shootings are a problem in this country
30 Gun Control • Guest Editorials
and need to be addressed. With that acknowledgement comes a fork in the road, where the question “what do we want to do about it?” is asked. The answer to that question is just as multifaceted as the movement itself. We cannot focus solely on guns, or solely on mental health, or solely on school security, but we must push for a composite approach that adequately addresses all of these things. The miscommunication lies where we feel that advocating for one solution means that the other is not important. I can give a speech about gun control, but that does not mean that we don’t need better security in our schools or that we don’t need more funding for mental health services. Miscommunication also lies where a person feels that an argument is a personal attack on their morality, which it usually is not. Those who truly believe that the majority of “liberals” want to “take all of our guns away” simply have not listened to anything that we have had to say, and that is truly a shame. Though I stand by my statement that we are one movement, it is important to realize that we do not all share the same opinions and concerns. In such a diverse society, conflicting perspectives are inevitable. In a society that still has remnants of the oppressive structures
used to enslave my ancestors, conflicting perspectives are inevitable. In a society where upon seeing a badge, my first thought is that I hope I told my siblings I loved them today, just in case they won’t be able to hear their sister’s voice again, conflicting perspectives are inevitable. So, what do we do to begin the process of making our country safer for all communities? As far as gun laws, the implementation of stricter laws such as requiring universal background checks and mental health evaluations for all firearms would do a great deal to prevent mass shootings in this country. Unfortunately, it would do nothing for the shootings that take place every day, especially in communities of color. We need to pressure our legislators in cracking down on the illegal sale and distribution of firearms because the majority of the shootings that take place in urban communities on a daily basis are done with illegal handguns. These instances are ignored and labeled as “gang retaliation,” leaving innocent children in black neighborhoods unsafe and unprotected. We also need to ensure that we are all exercising our constitutional right to vote. Get registered and get to the polls no matter what you believe in; be sure to educate yourself as well. Know the way
We must put aside our differences to ensure a safer tomorrow
that your region and your state conduct elections. Research all of the candidates and nominees that are up for election and know what they stand for, their prior voting history if they have been elected before and what organizations they are funded by. I would urge you to do this research even before you register to vote, as Florida is a closed primary election state (you can only vote for candidates that affiliate with the political party you register under in the primaries). Make a point of researching and fully understanding legislation as it is proposed. Many times, politicians word a specific policy in a way that is so elusive, you do not realize it could in its implementation prove detrimental to you or to the people you advocate for. Once we can make an informed decision on who and what we are voting for, we can really make sure that the people we elect represent our interests as a whole. We have all come from different walks of life, but miraculously, a majority of the country has come together to fight for our lives. None of us want anyone else to experience what we had to experience, and that drives us every day to fight for change and progress. If we march forward together, I am confident the day will come when every community is safe. Guest editorial by Tyah-Amoy Roberts
