Parkland victims' fathers heckled by gun-rights advocates during protest at NRA convention
Fathers of two Parkland shooting victims slammed President Donald Trump's speech at the National Rifle Association (NRA) convention in Texas and staged protests on Saturday, calling for gun reforms.
Reports state that the victims' fathers were heckled by gun rights advocates as they staged a demonstration just a few feet away from the annual NRA convention in Dallas.
A 19-year-old former student of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High school in Parkland, Florida, opened fire on the campus with his legally-bought AR-15 rifle, killing 17 people. The victims of the shooting mostly included students and teachers of the school.
Jamie Guttenberg, a 15-year-old teenager, also died in the tragedy. Jamie's father Fred Guttenberg was reportedly heckled by gun rights advocates with a bullhorn as he called for gun reforms in the country near the NRA convention, according to USA Today reports.
Guttenberg, who had a makeshift stage just four blocks away from the Dallas convention, said: "My daughter was hunted at school."
The father went on to describe how his teenage daughter was killed instantly when a bullet from an AR-15 assault-style rifle pierced her side and severed her spine.
Guttenberg was accompanied at the protest by Manual Oliver, whose 17-year-old son Joaquin was also among the 17 people killed during February 14 massacre.
Ever since the Parkland shooting, Oliver has been painting murals dedicated to his son.
He, on Saturday, depicted a "circus festival" in Dallas where President Trump could be seen as a ringleader and the NRA spokesperson Dana Loesch as a clown, with a shooting target of a student wearing a backpack in the center.\
The mural read: "We demand a fair game."
Oliver also criticized Trump for his speech at the NRA convention on Friday where the Republican strongly supported gun rights. Trump attacked "gun-free zones" in his speech and again called for teachers in schools to be armed with weapons.
Oliver said:"I’m impressed with the support the NRA got from our president yesterday. It’s amazing. I haven’t heard President Trump say the name of my son, even once."