Parkland shooting survivor organizes March For Our Lives rally

By Trish Christakis

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    PARKLAND, Florida (WFOR) — March For Our Lives rallies are happening across South Florida this weekend.

One taking place in Parkland was organized by a high schooler named Zoe Weissman.

She says planning this event has helped her heal from the trauma she experienced the day of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas shooting.

“I survived the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting. I was at the middle school next door, and I got stuck outside. From those experiences I developed PTSD and that motivated me to get involved in activism,” said Weissman.

Weissman says she heard the gunshots that day and since has made it her mission to make sure students never have to experience the trauma she and many others went through that day.

“I was one of the only kids stuck outside that day. A lot of us, regardless of our experiences that day, just felt so traumatized and so grief stricken.”

Weissman’s March For Our Lives rally will take place Saturday at the Pine Trails Park from 9 to 11 a.m.

“That’s going to include speakers such as myself, other survivors, community activists.”

Another will happen at the Weston Library Park from 9 to 11 a.m. – this one organized by students from Cypress Bay High School.

Lastly, in the evening on Saturday in Coral Gables, another rally starts at city hall from 4 to 7 p.m.

This movement was founded in 2018 after the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas. Students like Zoe Weissman hope her work will help end gun violence.

“Obviously after everything in Uvalde and Buffalo, everyone in Parkland and around the country felt hopeless. In times of tragedy, this is a window of opportunity that our politicians listen to us.”

During school finals, Weissman, with the help of her mom, made this rally possible. It’s something she says has helped her through her personal grief.

“For survivors like myself, it’s really hard because it rehashes a lot of what we had to go through, and I think that planning this march and throwing myself into this march has really helped me cope with that by knowing that I’m not just watching another mass shooting happening.”

Weissman says they’re expecting about 2,000 people.

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