In brief
In a heartbreaking reflection of ongoing gun violence, Mia Tretta, a Brown University student who previously survived a mass shooting at Saugus High School, experienced yet another tragic event during finals week: an active shooter incident on her college campus. This incident left two dead and numerous injured, illustrating the grim reality for students who have endured similar experiences. Tretta’s story captures the fear and trauma faced by a generation of survivors who hope to find safety in their educational environments.
During finals week at Brown University, Mia Tretta, a junior, received alarming emergency alerts that triggered traumatic memories of her past. Having survived a mass shooting at Saugus High School in 2019, where two fellow students lost their lives and she was shot in the abdomen, Tretta hoped that college would be a safe refuge.
While studying in her dorm with a friend, alerts began flooding in, warning of a suspected shooting at the engineering building, which later turned deadly, leaving two dead and nine injured on campus. 'No one should ever have to go through one shooting, let alone two,' Tretta lamented, expressing disbelief that she would have to confront such fears again.
This tragic incident represents a recurring nightmare for countless students who have rehearsed lockdown drills and lived through the trauma of school shootings. Tretta’s ordeal underscores the ongoing challenge of ensuring safety within educational institutions, particularly as she reflects on her own advocacy efforts for gun control, centered around the issue of 'ghost guns,' which remain a threat.
As she grapples with her emotions, Tretta continues to focus on her studies and the educational journeys of shooting survivors, determined to transform her experience into advocacy. 'I chose Brown, a place that I love, because it felt like somewhere I could finally be safe,' she stated poignantly. 'And it’s happened again. And it didn’t have to.'
