„…they’re making it bigger than it needs to be at this moment.“
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School student Brandon Minoff has spoken to various outlets about the shooting and has called out the media for exploiting the tragedy to advance an agenda.
Minoff told CNN he had two classes with suspect Nikolas Cruz, who shared that he’d been expelled from multiple private schools and called him “very quiet and strange.”
While other students have come out in large support of increased gun control, Minoff explained to MSNBC’s Brian Williams that he doesn’t necessarily think that’s the answer.
“Gun-wise, I don’t think there’s any way to prevent it,” he said. “You outlaw guns, it just creates higher demand for it.“
Instead, he turned to the issue of mental health and explained that a student who has been expelled from three different schools needs help.
During an interview with the Daily Wire, he elaborated on his thoughts about gun control and said legislation needs to be “helpful,” but cast doubts on the effectiveness of any law.
“You can’t drink until you’re 21, but that doesn’t stop kids from drinking,” he explained. “I don’t know if there is a way to stop it. There is a way around anything.”
Instead, he advocated for armed security guards on campus and claimed if football coach Aaron Feis, who was face-to-face with the shooter, had a weapon, he could have killed Cruz.
As with most tragedies, a time of mourning quickly turned into a debate over a highly-contested issue, and Minoff denounced the way the media has handled the tragedy.
“It pains me to see that knowing that 17 of my classmates are dead and they just want to talk about gun control,” he told the Daily Wire. “Students have opinions, they say stuff that they’re against guns, and that gun control is necessary, but they’re making it bigger than it needs to be at this moment.”
Some students, who are advocating for gun control, have refused to meet with President Donald Trump, but Minoff welcomes the opportunity to meet with the president and discuss necessary limits and restrictions on guns.
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