EMMA GONZALEZ MAKES HISTORY

EMMA GONZALEZ

 born c. 2000)

 is an American activist and advocate for gun control. As a high school senior she survived the February 2018 Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida, 

and in response co-founded the gun-control advocacy group Never Again MSD.

González first drew national attention after a speech she gave at a rally against gun violence went viral, famously proclaiming "We call B.S." on the lack of action by politicians funded by the NRA. Subsequently, González continued to be an outspoken activist on gun control, making high profile media appearances and helping organize the March for Our Lives, which became the largest student protest in American history. Speaking at the demonstration, González led a moment of silence for the victims of the massacre, standing on stage for six minutes and 20 seconds, which she observed was the length of the shooting spree.

González was attacked for her Fort Lauderdale speech by many from the political right wing of American politics and press. She has also faced derogatory comments made by internet trollsabout her sexual orientation, short hair, and skin color. She was verbally attacked by Leslie Gibson, Republican candidate running unopposed for the Maine legislature and lifetime NRA member, who referred to her as a "skinhead lesbian", whereupon 28-year-old Eryn Gilchrist filed papers to run against him, thus providing an opponent; Republican former state Senator Thomas Martin, Jr., who said that Gibson's remarks did not represent the Maine Republican Party, and that he planned to contact the survivors to commend their courage, also filed to run for the seat. A few days later, Gibson dropped out of the race.

Conspiracy theorists have falsely accused the students, including González, of being crisis actors. Benjamin Kelly, an aide to Florida state Representative Shawn Harrison, was fired after making such accusations.  Donald Trump Jr. faced criticism for appearing to support the crisis actor accusations.

Following her highly publicized speech at the March for Our Lives, pro-gun activists doctored fake photos and video showing González ripping up a copy of the United States Constitution, spreading them widely on internet forums and social media. Snopes.com observed that the video was in fact a digitally manipulated Teen Vogue video of her tearing up shooting range targets.

González identifies as bisexual. According to Vogue, her buzz cut is not a reaction to the school shooting. "People asked me, 'Are you taking a feminist stand?' No, I wasn't. It's Florida. Hair is just an extra sweater I’m forced to wear," González recalled. "I even made a PowerPoint presentation to convince my parents to let me shave my head, and it worked."