Parkland Speaks: Survivors From Marjory Stoneman Douglas Share Their Stories

In Parkland Speaks, Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School English and journalism teacher and yearbook advisor Sarah Lerner has compiled the experiences and responses of 40 students and 2 other teachers, in addition to her own, to the events of February 14, 2018. That’s when a shooter killed 17 and wounded 17 more at the school in Parkland, Florida.

This paperback book came out in January 2019. Kirkus Reviews has described it as, “A valuable primary source document that will be of interest to students and activists today and historians tomorrow.”

The student survivors of Parkland started March for Our Lives, and many of them continue to be at the forefront of advocating for sensible gun legislation around the country and at the federal level. This book would be a meaningful reading/discussion choice for Students Demand Action groups, who could readily relate to what has become such a tragically common experience.

It would also also be a good choice for adult readers who want to better understand the fear and trauma being experienced by young people in their schools, which should be places of safety, learning, fun, and growth. For adult readers, pairing Parkland Speaks with some other readings about the trauma being inflicted by active shooter drills would round out the picture of how the specter of a shooting and the preparation for a shooting are already traumatizing our young people.