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Corey Hixon's father was killed in the Parkland, Florida, school shooting in 2018.

When we debate guns and gun violence in this country, we tend to get bogged down in statistics and often argue over semantics.

There is zero question that the U.S. is a complete outlier among developed nations when it comes to gun deaths, and even more of an outlier when it comes to mass shootings. No other high-income nation puts their children through active shooter drills at school. None of our peer countries have firearms as the leading cause of death for children and teens like we do. (In fact, it's not even in the top five causes of death in any other high-income nation.)

And yet, no matter how many times we experience gunmen massacring schoolchildren, no matter how many shocking or sobering stats we see, a not-insignificant portion of our country either denies that there's a problem or denies that there's anything we can do about it.


Because our debates over this issue can get unnecessarily complicated, it's good to be reminded of the simple truth that guns cause unnecessary loss, grief and pain. And nowhere has that been made more clear than in Corey Hixon's brief testimony at the trial for Nikolas Cruz, the murderer who shot and killed 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, on Feb. 14, 2018.

One of those killed was Corey Hixon's father, Chris Hixon. He was the athletic director at the school and was shot and killed while trying to disarm the gunman. According to Florida ABC affiliate Local 10, Hixon was one of the last to speak before the court. Rather than have him read a victim impact statement, the judge asked Hixon, who lives with Kabuki syndrome, what he wanted to share about his father.

In just two sentences—each of which was followed up by an emotional hug with his mom—Hixon distilled the emotional reality of our nation's gun problem and brought home what gets lost when we keep doing nothing.

Watch:

The whole room felt that "I miss him!" But the simple description of walking to get donuts together and walking back home every Saturday is just gut-wrenching. It's those little things, the everyday connections and joys and time spent together, that gun violence rips away.

This isn't the first time Corey Hixon has touched people's hearts. A video of him giving Joe Biden a hug at his father's funeral when Biden was vice president went viral during the 2020 election season.

People try to say that gun control won't stop mass shootings, but can't we at least try? Nikolas Cruz legally purchased the AR-15-style rifle he used to terrorize and slaughter students and faculty at that high school. He was a legal gun owner, right up until he wasn't. Though he had no criminal record, red flag laws—which Florida enacted in the wake of the Parkland shooting—could have prevented him from being able to legally purchase or own a firearm.

We have plenty of statistical evidence that gun laws do work. But unfortunately, statistics aren't likely to change people's minds. At this point, if appealing to emotion by sharing the grief families have to live with is more effective to persuade, fine. The emotions are real and the stats are sound, so if that's what it takes to get people to accept reality and do something about it, so be it.

No child should have to go through what Corey Hixon has. And no American should look away from his pain when he truly could be any of us.

Jimmy Fallon addressed Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School's class of 2018, delivering a speech we should all hear.

The "Tonight Show" host made a surprise appearance at the Parkland, Florida, school's 2018 graduation ceremony, taking the stage to a round of enthusiastic applause. The usually apolitical talk-show host used a February monologue to express support and urge attendance at the March for Our Lives event organized by the school's students in response to a mass shooting that left 17 of their classmates and teachers dead. During his June 3 commencement address, he used humor to let the school and its students know how much he's inspired by their response to tragedy.

"Most commencement speakers get up and talk in future tense: 'You will succeed. You will make us proud. You will change the world,'" Fallon said. "But I’m not going to say that because you’re not the future. You’re the present."


"When something feels hard, remember that it gets better," Fallon said. "Choose to move forward. Don't let anything stop you."

It can be hard to find the silver lining in some of life's tragedies, and sometimes, you have to create your own change to find it. Fallon spoke specifically to how the students of Parkland have changed the world for all of us, finding light in the deepest darkness.

"Every bad experience can have something good that comes out of it. Sometimes things that seem like setbacks can take our lives in a totally new direction that can change our lives in ways we don't expect, and they make us better and stronger," he said. "You guys have already proved that to everyone. You took something horrific, and instead of letting it stop you, you started a movement — not just here in Florida, not just in America, but throughout the whole world. The whole world has heard your voice, and that was you making a choice."

Graduates of  Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School leave their graduation ceremony. Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images.

"Don't think about what you want to do, think about why you want to do it, and the rest will figure itself out," Fallon said.

That's great advice, no matter who you are.

Watch Fallon's full address to the Marjory Stoneman Douglas class of 2018 below.

It's finals week and Hunter Pollack is missing his biggest ally: his sister.

High-school and college students know how stressful finals week can be, especially if you're cramming for tests that can have a lasting impact on your academic careers.

A few years ago, whenever Hunter found himself in these situations, he could always count on his sister, Meadow. Her encouragement, often in the form of inspirational text messages, helped him get through times of self-doubt and overwhelming stress.


But this week, Meadow isn't here to offer that encouragement. She was one of the 17 victims in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, an 18-year-old high school senior who was described as having "a smile like sunshine."

Heading into finals week, Hunter shared some of those text message on his Twitter account, writing:

"Finals week, and you’re not here to give me the motivation that keeps me going. I don’t know how I cope without our daily texts. miss you."

[rebelmouse-image 19534546 dam="1" original_size="596x660" caption="Image by Hunter Pollack/Twitter" expand=1]Image by Hunter Pollack/Twitter

[rebelmouse-image 19534547 dam="1" original_size="500x654" caption="Image by Hunter Pollack/Twitter" expand=1]Image by Hunter Pollack/Twitter

Nothing could replace Meadow, of course, but an informal community of strangers online responded to Hunter's tweet in the most inspiring way.

The response was overwhelming, with strangers stepping in to offer support and encouragement.

Echoing the sentiments of Meadow, people began sharing acts of kindness in their response to Hunter's tweet:

"You got this."

"You've got a whole country rooting for you. I know it feels so painful sometimes and so completely empty at others, but you can get through this."

"You are so strong, Hunter. Push through in her honor — millions of people are supporting you from behind. You got this. "

"You're so strong bro. I'm in this with, as well as many others. Good luck on your finals, you got this. It's for Meadow. Make her proud."

[rebelmouse-image 19534548 dam="1" original_size="642x710" caption="Image credit: Hunter Pollack/Twitter" expand=1]Image credit: Hunter Pollack/Twitter

We've learned so much from those affected by the Parkland shootings, including how to support them during their times of need.

The Parkland survivors have shown us so much already, offering courage and compassion in the face of criticism and doubts over their movement.

They've shown how our nation's youth can rally behind a cause and capture the hearts and minds of a nation.

But they're also human.

Hunter's tweet, and the response from people online, including many who probably disagree with his politics, shows the best in all of us.

We continue to be inspired by those affected by the Parkland shootings — but sometimes they need our support and inspiration just as much as we need it from them.

Making fun of Parkland survivors is in bad taste. Turns out, it's also bad for business.

Conservative media commentators are getting a crash course in decency from the Parkland shooting survivors. The latest example is Fox News host Laura Ingraham, who mocked survivor David Hogg on her Twitter account for not getting into the colleges of his choice, writing:

"David Hogg Rejected By Four Colleges To Which He Applied and whines about it. (Dinged by UCLA with a 4.1 GPA...totally predictable given acceptance rates.)"

People quickly took notice and many of them weren't happy.


Hogg responded by asking people to contact the advertisers who pay for Ingraham's show, another example of how much better the Parkland teens understand social media than their critics.

The Parkland students are showing adults there's a new level of accountability in 2018.

No doubt Hogg and his supporters were angry. But instead of lowering themselves to Ingraham's level, he went for direct action. Ironically, he also used a guiding principle of conservative thought against Ingraham by "letting the market speak."

And speak it did.

This isn't new ground for the Parkland teens. As Hogg's own pinned tweet from March 11 explains:

Can we please not debate this as Democrats and Republicans but discuss this as Americans? In the comments if you see someone you dissagree with do not attack each other  talk to one another, this applies to me too. WE MUST WORK TOGETHER TO SAVE OUR FUTURE.

Advertisers quickly began announcing they were pulling their dollars from her show. As the story went viral, Ingraham finally published an apology to her over 2 million Twitter followers, writing:

"Any student should be proud of a 4.2 GPA —incl. @DavidHogg111.  On reflection, in the spirit of Holy Week, I apologize for any upset or hurt my tweet caused him or any of the brave victims of Parkland. For the record, I believe my show was the first to feature David immediately after that horrific shooting and even noted how "poised" he was given the tragedy. As always, he’s welcome to return to the show anytime for a productive discussion."

Ingraham's apology didn't sound sincere. But she had to do it anyway.

It's hard to take Ingraham's apology at face value. Like so many other half-baked apologies from celebrities and politicians, she expressed remorse not on principle but "for any upset or hurt." She then quickly pivoted to taking credit for having previously interviewed him, and offered to have him back on her show — something that would undoubtably be good for her ratings and advertisers.

Hogg himself doesn't buy it, writing:

I 100% agree an apology in an effort just to save your advertisers is not enough. I will only accept your apology only if you denounce the way your network has treated my friends and I in this fight. It’s time to love thy neighbor, not mudsling at children.

Holding Ingraham and others accountable is the right thing to do and shows a better way forward.

It's totally fine to disagree with Parkland survivors and their ideas. It's not fine to make personal attacks that have nothing to do with the issue at hand.

It should be the standard for anyone in any debate.

That Hogg and his fellow students are leading the way here is yet another way they're showing all of us that there's a different way to do things.