Democratic and Republican conventions will have dueling speakers connected to the Parkland shooting


Both the Democratic National Convention and the Republican National Convention will feature speakers connected to the 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, that left 17 people dead — although the speakers have "wildly divergent views," the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports.
On Wednesday night, 20-year-old survivor and March For Our Lives activist Emma González will urge stricter gun laws in a 40-second video airing during the Democrat's convention. "People affected by everyday gun violence have to walk by the street corner where their best friend, their brother, their mother, their nephew, where they themselves were shot," González says in the video, her voice breaking with emotion. She adds, "Until one of us or all of us stand up and say, 'I can't do this anymore, I can't sit by and watch the news treat these shootings like acts of God' — gun violence isn't just going to stop until there's a force fighting harder against it, and I'm going to do something to prevent it."
Fred Guttenberg, whose 14-year-old daughter, Jaime, was killed in the massacre, previously spoke for the Democrats on Tuesday night, endorsing nominee Joe Biden while announcing Florida's votes during the roll call. "When my daughter was murdered in Parkland, Joe Biden called to share on our family's grief," he said. "I quickly learned about his decency and his civility, but I also learned about his toughness and how he's beaten the NRA."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Andrew Pollack, whose 18-year-old daughter, Meadow, was also killed, will speak next week to endorse President Trump. While the Republican National Convention hasn't offered more details about Pollack's appearance yet, the father is an outspoken critic of Biden and has called Trump "the PEACE president." He's also slammed the pro-gun-control student activists behind March For Our Lives in the past, claiming "they just got famous off the death of these kids. Their agenda was to get famous and spew more of their liberalism ways without looking at the facts."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
-
Ukraine: Trump's mixed messages
Feature Trump reverses a Pentagon freeze on Patriot missiles to Ukraine as Russia ramps up air attacks
-
Diddy: An abuser who escaped justice?
Feature The jury cleared Sean Combs of major charges but found him guilty of lesser offenses
-
Death from above: Drones upend rules of war in Ukraine
Feature The world's militaries are paying close attention to drone use in the Russia-Ukraine war
-
Secret Service 'failures' on Trump shooting
Speed Read Two new reports detail security breakdowns that led to attempts on the president's life
-
Trump set to hit Canada with 35% tariffs
Speed Read The president accused Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney of failing to stop the cross-border flow of fentanyl
-
Mahmoud Khalil files $20M claim over ICE detention
Speed Read This is the 'first damages complaint' brought by an individual targeted by the Trump's administration's 'crackdown' on Gaza war protesters
-
Trump threatens Brazil with 50% tariffs
Speed Read He accused Brazil's current president of leading a 'witch hunt' against far-right former leader Jair Bolsonaro
-
AI scammer fakes Rubio messages to top officials
Speed Read The unknown individual mimicked Rubio in voice and text messages sent to multiple government officials
-
SCOTUS greenlights Trump's federal firings
speed read The Trump administration can conduct mass federal firings without Congress' permission, the Supreme Court ruled
-
New tariffs set on 14 trading partners
Speed Read A new slate of tariffs will begin August 1 on imports from Japan, South Korea, Thailand and more
-
Elon Musk launching 'America Party'
Speed Read The tech mogul promised to form a new political party if Trump's megabill passed Congress