Michigan University shooting: Sandy Hook survivor lives through another horror
A 21-year-old woman who has now survived two mass shootings is demanding the government take action on gun control.
To find yourself in the midst of a mass shooting is unthinkable, but to experience the horror twice has become the "incomprehensible" reality for one woman after the Michigan State University shooting in the US on Monday.
Three students were killed and five others injured when a gunman opened fire on campus at 8.30pm (local time).
Jackie Matthews, 21, said she was across the street from where the shooting took place. In a Tiktok video she explained it is now her second time surviving a mass shooting in her young life.
"10 years and 2 months ago I survived the Sandy Hook shooting," she said.
The infamous school shooting which took place just over a decade ago is known as one of the deadliest US shootings, with a gunman killing 20 children and 6 adults in a mere 11 minutes. Ms Matthews shared how she was one of the terrified students hiding in their classroom for hours while the gunman went on a rampage through her primary school.
" I was hunched in the corner with my classmates for so long that I actually got a PTSD fracture in my L4 and L5, in my right lower back," she said.
"The fact that this is the second mass shooting I have lived through is incomprehensible. My heart goes out to all the families and the friends of the victims of the Michigan State shooting, but we can no longer just provide love and prayers.
"There needs to be legislation, there needs to be action. It is not OK. We can no longer allow this to happen."
And Ms Matthews was not the only Michigan student to experience a second mass shooting. CBS reported Michigan senior student Emilie Bird lived through a mass shooting in her town of Kalamazoo in Michigan where six people were randomly killed.
Michigan State University campus shooting
The gunman has been identified as 43-year-old Anthony Dwayne McRae by police, who reportedly had no association with the university. He has since died after an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
It has been reported that Arielle Anderson (junior), Alexandria Verner (junior) and Brian Fraser (sophomore) were the victims of the gunman's actions.
Police unsure of gunman's motives
The gunman's motives are still unknown to police at this moment.
His father spoke to local media and said he had noticed a change in his son's behaviour after the death of his mother in 2020, but had no idea he had planned to act in such a violent way.
“Why? We don’t know why,” Michael McRae Snr told MLive.
“I’m sorry it happened. God bless the victims and God bless their families. For myself, for what he did, I’d say, ‘I’m sorry'," he continued.
It has been reported that the gunman's recently deactivated Facebook account was awash with religious content which was believed by some to convery extremists views.
US continues to grapple with gun-related violence
The university campus is the latest backdrop for America's seemingly never ending gun violence issues. According to the Gun Violence Archive, the shooting is the 67th mass shooting in America this year and the rate of these show no sign of slowing down.
Ms Matthews is among the many Americans who are calling for immediate gun reform in the country where firearm possession is legal in every state. She adamantly believes the frequency in which many Americans lose their lives due to gun violence should overshadow the current laws in place.
Michigan state representative Ranjeev Puri echoed a similar sentiment who spoke plainly when sharing his opinion on Twitter.
"F**k your thoughts and prayers" his official statement began.
"Thoughts and prayers without action and change are meaningless. Our office will continue to work tirelessly to pass common sense gun reform immediately," he wrote.
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