Uvalde Survivor’s Parents: She Was “Robbed of Her Childhood”

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CHIEF INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Now, today, marks one year since the 19 elementary school children and two teachers were killed in Uvalde, Texas, during one of the deadliest school shootings in U.S. history. While the security failures that traumatic day are still being scrutinized, Caitlyne Gonzalez, a 10-year-old survivor of the attack, has been speaking out against gun violence here in the U.S. She hopes such a tragedy can be prevented in the future. Her parents now speak to Hari Sreenivasan about how their daughter and the wider community have been coping in the aftermath.

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HARI SREENIVASAN, INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Christiane, thanks. Neftali and Gladys Gonzalez, thank you so much both for joining us. You are the parents of 10-year-old Caitlyne, and she was in Robb Elementary School that day when so many of her friends were gunned down. And now, here we are, about a year later, and we are talking. I just want to know, first of all, how is she doing?

GLADYS GONZALEZ, PARENT OF UVALDE SCHOOL SHOOTING SURVIVOR, CAITLYNE GONZALES: I guess as the one-year mark, you know, what — now that the one-year mark is today, I guess it’s — you know, it’s just we’ve all been stuck on May 24th. So, we have just — she’s been taking the days as they come. You know, there’s — there was an increase in symptoms associated to PTSD that were manifesting as the one-year approached. But, you know, we tried to be with her every day as she pushes through.

SREENIVASAN: What is she like now since in this past year compared to the day you dropped off at school that day?

G. GONZALEZ: I think she has had to do a lot of growing up since May 24th. Prior to that — I mean, she’s always been that outgoing, spontaneous, very charismatic little girl. But since then, she almost has an obsession into looking into other — into learning about, you know, the mass shootings. And, you know, she’s come across and met a lot of mass shooting survivors. And that’s — you know, what 11-year-old does that? Nowadays, you know, it’s become more new norm and this is what surviving a mass shooting does to a victim.

SREENIVASAN: Neftali, she lost her best friend, Jackie. And tell me about – – how does PTSD — how does this manifest itself in your daughter on a day- to-day basis?

NEFTALI GONZALEZ, PARENT OF UVALDE SCHOOL SHOOTING SURVIVOR, CAITLYNE GONZALES: Well, there’s a lot of triggers. Any little bump, anything will trigger it, sirens. She is just concerned, like, what was that noise? You know, what’s happening? And I just — I’m a veteran and I feel that she shouldn’t feel that way here in the United States. She should have the freedom of feeling safe, which she doesn’t. She’s lost all respect towards law enforcement, because in her mind, she feels that they failed. And it’s been proven that they failed. No other shooting, mass shooting, has lasted so much time with law enforcement having the equipment, having been there, being right there to eliminate the threat. And, to me, it’s just the lack of courage that day, that was the only excuse that they didn’t want to go in there and save these kids.

SREENIVASAN: And do you see improvements? Are there things that your daughter couldn’t do a few months ago that she’s able to do now?

N. GONZALEZ: We have seen — it might seem like little improvements to somebody else, but to us, they are huge improvements. She couldn’t sleep by herself. My wife slept with her for nine months after the shooting. She was just paranoid. And we’ve seen that now she’s able to sleep with her — by herself. She had to have her whole room lit up, because she’s afraid of the dark. And little by little, she’s been dimming those lights. So, we have seen improvements, it’s just she still needs more.

SREENIVASAN: Neftali, I’m assuming that, as a veteran, you have had friends in the service that you know that are or have suffered from PTSD. To see your daughter going through this, what’s that like?

N. GONZALEZ: I feel that she’s been robbed of her childhood. Because now, she — at first, she had to deal with the pandemic, you know, and then the shooting and these things I don’t think a child, a 10-year-old should go through this stuff. So, I feel that she’s been robbed of her childhood. And now, she is taking another road to become an activist. And I just feel that she shouldn’t. I wish she had never gone through this so she could live her childhood life.

SREENIVASAN: Neftali, what is it that — when you talk to her, what’s motivating her to do this? Because, a lot of 10- and 11-year-olds, this is not their interest or direction. And, look, a lot of adults do not want to speak in public in front of people, yet your daughter is standing in front of legislators and speaking publicly and advocating?

N. GONZALEZ: She feels that no child should go to school scared. They should feel safe. And she won’t back down. She’s committed to this and she — which is surprising to us. We never saw this side of her at such a young age and having such an interest in this. And it all comes from her. We don’t push her. We don’t — she — I’ve always said, she is the one, she’s in total control. If she ever feels like she doesn’t want to do anything, we don’t do it. And we’re just there to take her to Washington. She’s been to Washington, she’s been to Austin, to the capitol, and it’s all — this is all she wants to do, she demands these changes.

SREENIVASAN: So, what are the changes that you are advocating for?

G. GONZALEZ: So, we are advocating for gun reform. We’re by no means trying to take away, you know, the guns of the, you know, law-abiding citizens, you know, because that’s one thing that, you know, we’ve heard, you know, we all are trying to infringe on our Second Amendment, and that is not. So, this gunman that entered my daughter’s school had just turned 18 and he was able to purchase assault weapons, military weapons. And so, had he been 21, he wouldn’t have been able to. So, we want, you know, background checks. You know, something that we can meet halfway. We understand that Texas is a gun loving state. And so, changing — making changes like this, it’s going to be hard, but that’s not something that we’re willing to back down on.

SREENIVASAN: So, Neftali, in Texas there was a proposal to try and move the age of acquiring a weapon from 18, to 21, a gun. And it didn’t make it. How did Caitlyn take that? How did you all take that?

N. GONZALEZ: It was a disappointment, because my ultimate goal is ban all assault weapons. I have handled these weapons in the military, and they are not toys and they just belong at war. I don’t see the purpose of us having them here. But I’m willing to compromise. You know, let’s raise the age. You know, and we’re not asking for much, from 18 to 21. I just feel that anything, any changes that we do it will be a positive change. If we don’t have no changes, we’re going to have the same results, and I just feel that we can’t — I can’t accept this being our norm, our lifestyle in the United States. I just — don’t think — it’s unacceptable for me.

SREENIVASAN: You know, I have spoken to different survivors, unfortunately, of these types of incidents. And when I speak to the kids, one of the things that kids say is that, you know, grown-ups pushback at them and they say, oh, you’ve been coached by your parents, oh, you’re — you know, you’re part of an anti-gun lobby. Have you or Caitlyne faced that kind of criticism?

G. GONZALEZ: Yes. I would say there’s been more positive feedback than the negative. However, you know, there’s a small, small people that have, you know, made some comments as to we’ve coached her or we’ve written her speeches. And to them I say that is totally factitious. You know, never have we coached her or pushed her into speaking at the rallies or local school board meetings. You know, we were never one to speak out. We were never political, by no means, or considered ourselves activists, you know, it was the fact that, you know, she was affected in such a big way and, you know, it affected our family, that pushed us to want to make changes for other family and their children.

SREENIVASAN: Neftali, I mean, has the community grown closer? Are there different divisions? I mean, what have you noticed?

N. GONZALEZ: Initially, we felt very united. The whole community came together. Everyone helping each other and grieving. And now, it seems there is a division among out — between our — in our community, and I don’t understand why, why that division? And we’re all here together and we’re trying to reach a certain goal, why is there a division?

SREENIVASAN: What are the sources of division? Why are people divided?

N. GONZALEZ: Well, one of them — the one that bothers me the most is that there are some people that think some of these kids aren’t victims. I feel that everybody is a victim, even if you weren’t there. As a nation, it is a victim, we’re victims of this gun violence. And I just don’t see why there is not division.

SREENIVASAN: Gladys, do you feel like people have said Caitlyne is not a victim because she wasn’t shot?

G. GONZALEZ: I think, you know, that — you know, there has been talk. And quite honestly, just the mere fact that she had to escape through a window, you know, that to me is a victim, a survivor. Yes, she was not, you know — I mean, no, she was not shot, physically shot. She escaped, you know, with some bruises and scrapes, but the mental scars, you know, that, she’s living with PTSD and anxiety. And she is just one of many victims that day.

SREENIVASAN: Can you tell me how does a little girl process the loss of her best friend in this way? I mean, what does she do on a daily or weekly basis? How often is she thinking about Jackie or visiting her grave? I mean, like I don’t know how a little child would do this.

G. GONZALEZ: I would say she’s — you know, I mean, I have a daily reminder of them. I can just imagine her. So, she’s — I’m sure she thinks about them on a daily basis. And, you know, just yesterday, you know, we were talking about, you know, going to the cemetery. And so, like today, she already knows, you know, that that’s, you know, a place she’s going to be going to. It’s hard. As hard as it is to comprehend, you know, the cemetery has become a place for comfort, because that’s where her friends are resting. So, there’s times where she likes to go bike riding, go play ball and, you know, blow bubbles. And so, it’s just — for an ordinary person, that — you know, it brings sadness, and I’m sure she feels the sadness, but that’s where she feels more comfort.

SREENIVASAN: And, Neftali, what do you hope for your daughter and really, for Uvalde, given that we’re a year away and you don’t see the town healing in the way it did immediately after the shooting?

N. GONZALEZ: Changes. We need changes, that’s what I am hoping that she gets and that we all get. She just — I want her to go back to her normal self and realistically thinking I think we won’t get the child back after May 24th. I see another — a side of her that I had never seen before and it saddens me because, to me, as a father, I’m a protector, a provider and I feel like I failed as father, as protecting her. I work for the school district as a plumber. I guarantee you, if I was there, I would’ve done something to stop that threat. I rarely — after the shooting, I felt guilty. I felt I should’ve been there and protected these kids somehow, and I felt guilty. I felt bothered. I feel a little bit different now, but it just still bothers me that I wasn’t there.

SREENIVASAN: Gladys and Neftali Gonzalez, the parents of Caitlyne Gonzales, survivor of the Robb Elementary shooting, thank you so much for joining us.

N. GONZALEZ: Thank you.

G. GONZALEZ: Thanks for having us.

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