When I was offered the opportunity to talk with two of the teachers from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School who had been on campus during the horrendous shooting on February 14th of this year, I jumped at the chance. There was so much to ask about. Not only what went through their heads at the time, but also what they saw in the kids that day, and in the days after. Many of these kids came out of it with a mission and purpose, and the energy and determination to see it through.
Melissa Falkowski (journalism) and Eric Garner (broadcast) asked many of their students to write about that day, about how they felt, and what they wanted to accomplish. It’s now in book form, edited by Falkowski and Garner, and titled “WE SAY #NEVERAGAIN,” Reporting by the Parkland Student Journalists.”
The day of the interview was the day after another mass shooting – this time in California at the Borderline Bar and Grill. You can imagine how raw Falkowski and Garner felt when we spoke. We talked about why they asked the students to write these essays, what the kids learned about journalism from the event and its aftermath, and how they see things in these kids that the rest of the world can’t begin to understand.
In December, the Parkland’s March For Our Lives activists were chosen as finalists for the 2018 TIME Magazine Person of the Year. Melissa Falkowski and Eric Garner give us a little insight into why. The book WE SAY #NEVER AGAIN will give you a lot more.
Click on the player below to listen to the conversation with Melissa Falkowski, Eric Garner, and Pam Atherton