School Shooting

Parkland School Shooting

Florida, 2018

AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee

Accessed through theconversation.com (11/20/21)

In the photograph, students are comforting each other after one of the nation’s deadliest school shootings. The photo captures crowds of people grieving together at the Parkland Baptist Church on February 15, 2018. They mourn the loss of the victims of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting. The gunman, Nikolas Cruz, was a former student who opened fire on the students and staff at the high school, killing 17 people and injuring 17 others (NY Times). During this devasting moment, the community leans on the support of others. The people in the photo are empathetically hugging each other with their eyes closed, showing their sorrow. This simple gesture is powerful because one cannot handle the trauma and grief from a school shooting alone. The message rings clearly in this photo: we need each other.