美国国家公共电台 NPR Parkland Shooting Survivor Discusses Newfound Activism To End Gun Violence

AILSA CHANG, HOST:

The mass shooting in February at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School transformed the lives of many people in the community. Survivors 1 found they have a powerful voice in the gun control debate. And they have been speaking up. Sophomore 2 Gabe Glassman has been working with Youth Radio to report on the impact of the shooting on his friends and family. We heard his reporting on this show the day before Marjory Stoneman Douglas reopened.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED BROADCAST)

GABE GLASSMAN: My mom's been checking in with me a lot. Her name is Lisa Glassman.

LISA GLASSMAN: OK, so how are you feeling right now for real? Tell me what's going on in your mind and stuff.

G. GLASSMAN: A lot. A lot is going on in my mind - obviously going back to school.

CHANG: Gabe and Lisa Glassman are here in Washington now for the March for our Lives tomorrow. And we invited them into the studio. Hey, there.

G. GLASSMAN: Hello.

L. GLASSMAN: Hi.

CHANG: What does it feel like to hear your voice on tape?

G. GLASSMAN: It sounds crazy.

(LAUGHTER)

CHANG: Is this your first time in Washington?

L. GLASSMAN: No. No. We've been before.

CHANG: I take it this is definitely not your first political demonstration 3, right, Gabe?

G. GLASSMAN: This is definitely not. This is probably going to be the craziest one, obviously.

CHANG: Craziest?

G. GLASSMAN: Over 800 marches around the world. It's just crazy how much support, like, this topic in politics right now is getting. And really I'm very proud of, like, the students that I go to school with because we started this...

CHANG: Yeah.

G. GLASSMAN: ...Conversation.

CHANG: What does it feel like to be teaming up with your mom on this?

G. GLASSMAN: It feels amazing because she's been proving me since Day 1. She's my partner in crime. And...

(LAUGHTER)

L. GLASSMAN: I love that.

(LAUGHTER)

G. GLASSMAN: And her support gives me energy, so that's what keeps me running.

CHANG: Lisa, when you watched Gabe return to classes, it was just two weeks after the shooting. What was going through your mind?

L. GLASSMAN: How hard saying goodbye to him was because before this happened, it was very easy. I was happy to get him off to school. And then saying goodbye to him as - reminded me of that fateful day, February 14, when our lives changed forever. So that sadness was just palpable.

CHANG: What about for you, Gabe? Was it really hard to go back?

G. GLASSMAN: Somewhat. One, for the - just for the emotional reasons. But when we got to school, first responders were there, police officers were there greeting us at every entrance, making sure that we felt comfortable, therapy dogs everywhere.

L. GLASSMAN: They had card games. They had Chutes and Ladders from their childhoods so that way people would engage by playing a game. They weren't going to sit and learn geometry.

CHANG: Right. Forget the lesson plan.

L. GLASSMAN: Right. Exactly. So the teachers really wanted games brought into school - checkers, chess...

CHANG: I love that.

L. GLASSMAN: ...Anything to create conversation between the kids to get them talking about it and more comfortable, which is such a beautiful tribute to how much they cared about making the students feel at home again.

CHANG: Does school feel at all remotely normal again, Gabe? Do you want it to feel normal or...

G. GLASSMAN: I - when I first went back, I just wanted to go back to a new normal. But obviously there will never be a normal at this school. And like, I don't know if you've heard, but they're now - superintendent 4 of Broward schools said that as soon as we get back from spring break they're giving us clear backpacks. And there's now a security guard tower at our school. But we will find our new normal because we're not just going to sit here and let this bother us for the rest of our lives. We're going to persevere 5. And like, to all the people going to the march tomorrow or to any march tomorrow, you are fighting for change. And we thank you for standing 6 with us.

CHANG: Both of you have been so involved and so engaged in this movement. And I couldn't help but wonder, has this activism helped both of you get through the past few weeks?

L. GLASSMAN: Yeah. They talk about distracted grief. Losing those 17 people and having 17 others shot and in the hospital, you automatically became an activist 7. Like, whatever you could do to help. And Gabriel's teacher, Melody Herzfeld, who's the drama teacher at Stoneman Douglas, she's an inspiration. She sat with those students in the closet and took attendance and made jokes and wouldn't stop talking.

CHANG: This is during the shooting.

L. GLASSMAN: Yes, during the shooting. And so many of the activists 8 from the #NeverAgain movement came out of that closet. So like, that activism and that distraction 9 really helped heal us. And then Gabe doing the interview and talking to people about what their feelings were I think helped him kind of face his own fear.

G. GLASSMAN: This activism from our school really inspired the country, inspired the world.

CHANG: What did it do for you personally getting through these last few weeks?

G. GLASSMAN: Personally it has inspired me. I don't think without this activism I would have done the NPR piece because I don't know what my emotional state would have been because if my mind was still on February 14, I would still be an emotional wreck 10. But my mind was on activism and change.

CHANG: Well, were you someone - before February 14, were you someone who wanted to be involved politically, who was very engaged, who would speak out about issues? Or have these last several weeks kind of opened up a new part of your personality?

G. GLASSMAN: Politically, no, I've never been, like, a political person. But this has made me put a little bit more effort into putting some more politics into my life.

CHANG: Lisa, what have you learned about your son just watching the way he's responded to everything that's happened?

L. GLASSMAN: I think he's really found his voice. And he'll tell you that he's not political, but he was always looking to heal the world. That's part of what his personality is, is that where he can help somebody, he will help them. Where he can solve a problem, he'll jump in and do that. So it doesn't surprise me that he's found his voice.

CHANG: Is it the same voice you knew he always had? Or was there something a little different?

L. GLASSMAN: It's shocking.

(LAUGHTER)

L. GLASSMAN: This is a young man that didn't speak until he was 3. And...

CHANG: Really?

L. GLASSMAN: ...Really had to pull those words out of him. And the fact that he's now speaking at rallies and saying we need change now, that voice has blossomed into something that is like a force to be reckoned with.

CHANG: So much has happened since February 14. And I just want to ask, is there anything you guys want to say to each other?

L. GLASSMAN: Oh, now I know why the tissues are here (laughter). Let's see. I'm just so proud of you, Gabriel. We're so proud of you. That's really what it comes down to because it's not easy to go into that school every day. And the other day when there was a threat and there was a bomb squad 11 the night before you had to go to school, you showed no fear. We were definitely more fearful of letting you go that day. And you said, I've got things to do. That was really just a moment that we realized that you were growing up.

G. GLASSMAN: Oh, don't say - I don't want to grow up.

(LAUGHTER)

G. GLASSMAN: Because I know my dad's going to listen to this...

(LAUGHTER)

G. GLASSMAN: ...You guys have been inspiring. You guys inspire me every day to be the young adult that I am. You guys support me in literally 12 everything I do every single day. And in the midst of this entire thing it's just incredible. And I love you. You guys are the greatest support group I can have.

CHANG: Gabe and Lisa Glassman, thank you guys both so much for coming in today.

L. GLASSMAN: Thank you so much for having us.

G. GLASSMAN: Anytime.

CHANG: Gabe Glassman is a sophomore at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and a reporter for Youth Radio. Lisa Glassman is his mom.

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