With kids back in school, it is inevitable for parents to remain concerned for their child's safety and wellbeing.
The concerns have always been the same: Will my child get hurt in school? Is my child being bullied? But unfortunately, another very real concern is at the forefront of parents' minds — an active shooter situation.
Moms with a Mic's Julia and Marissa Bagg spoke with Miami-Dade Schools Police Chief Edwin Lopez and Eric Garner, a teacher at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and survivor of the Parkland shooting tragedy, to discuss how to keep children safe in school in the event of an active shooter situation.
The conversation began because of a viral TikTok of a mom in Oklahoma preparing her son for kindergarten with a bulletproof backpack and detailed instructions on what to do during an active shooter situation.
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"We're living in times where the conversation where students and kids and children involving active shooter in critical incidents has to take place," Lopez said. "Yes, it's scary to have those conversations, but it's scarier to go into a school where there's 17 or 20 dead second or third-graders. That's ultimately the scariest thing for me and what makes me lose sleep at night on a personal level."
But while the father of two promotes conversations with your child about an active shooter situation in school, Lopez warns of the mental implications providing supplies, like a bulletproof backpack, could have on a child.
Garner wanted parents and students to remember that although diligence and attention should be paid to events like this, parents should still remember that these horrible events do not take place every day and that children should still enjoy and look forward to going to school.
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"When it comes to that video, I sat there and watched it, you kind of tear up a little bit because you don't want to think that your child could be in that scenario," Garner said. "It's important that he knows what to do if a bad guy shows up, but he also needs to know how to go to the lunchroom, how to stand in a line, when it's appropriate to raise your hand to go to the bathroom. So there's a lot that aspects just going to school that a 5-year-old does need to know."
Garner was present and teaching during the mass shooting on February 14, 2018, when a gunman shot and killed 14 students and three staff members.
"I ended up spending most of the evening in a room with the parents that their children never came home, which is difficult," Garner recalled. "It was a rough night. I'm not sure how much of that I want to talk about other than it'll be nice when justice is served, when the trial's over with and hopefully we can close that chapter."
Cruz's public defenders are in their second week of presenting testimony about his troubled life in hopes that the jury will sentence him to life in prison rather than the death penalty.
In 2022 alone, there were at least 122 incidents of gunfire on school grounds, resulting in 49 deaths and 79 injuries nationally, according to statistics from the Everytown for Gun Safety.
When it comes to safety in Miami-Dade County public schools, Lopez said the police department is equipped with the surveillance, tactical plans and personnel to keep kids safe in school. But he also called for the overall cooperation of students, parents and faculty during an active shooter situation.
Lopez said Miami-Dade County is engaging in active shooter drills to ensure students' safety in the event of a threat.
"We have to also ensure that we bring in our schools, administrators and teachers," Lopez said. "We know during a critical incident, teachers are just as important as law enforcement because they know these kids and they're able to make split-second decisions that can save lives."
The overall message from both Lopez and Garner to parents is to speak to their kids, pay attention to their behaviors, and remain in the know of what is happening in their community and in their child's school.
In South Florida, there are two apps you can download to help report incidents in your community: FortifyFL and SaferWatch.
