Zoe Weissman, a 20-year-old sophomore at Brown University, found herself in the midst of another traumatic event when a shooting occurred on campus. Having previously experienced the Parkland school shooting in 2018 as a 12-year-old, Weissman’s past trauma heightened her awareness during the Brown University incident. She recalled being more hyper-vigilant than her peers due to the lasting impact of the Parkland massacre, which led her to engage in activism for gun violence prevention.
During the lockdown at Brown University following the shooting that left two dead and nine injured, Weissman instinctively went into survival mode, securing her dorm room and staying updated through news reports. The incident, which took five days to resolve, underscored the ongoing issue of gun violence in the United States, with over 394 mass shootings reported in 2025 alone.
Joining Weissman in this harrowing experience was Mia Tretta, a junior at Brown University and a survivor of a previous shooting at Saugus High School in 2019. Tretta, shot in the abdomen during the high school incident, emphasized the emotional toll of enduring multiple shootings and the urgent need for gun reform in the country.
Weissman, now studying medical anthropology, stressed the importance of gun violence prevention efforts and the need to restrict access to firearms for potential perpetrators. She highlighted the necessity of addressing gun reform proactively to avoid further tragedies, urging Americans to support measures that prevent individuals from obtaining firearms for harmful purposes.