‘Reliving Oxford all over again.’ Some MSU students and parents endure second mass shooting in 15 months
By Ray Sanchez, CNN
Some Michigan State University students who survived Monday’s mass shooting — and their parents — had already been through a similar, horrific experience.
“I never expected in my lifetime to have to experience two school shootings,” Andrea Ferguson told CNN affiliate WDIV. “There’s several kids there that our daughter’s friends with that are going through the same thing.”
Ferguson told the station her daughter and other classmates were also survivors of the November 30, 2021, shooting at Oxford High School, which is about 80 miles northeast of the MSU campus in Lansing.
CNN has reached out to Ferguson for comment.
Three MSU students were killed and five others critically wounded on Monday by a man who then died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, authorities said.
In 2021, a 15-year-old with a 9 mm handgun fatally shot four Oxford High School students and wounded six other people, including a teacher.
Monday’s assault occurred hours before the five-year anniversary of the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. It marked the 67th mass shooting — with four or more shot, not including a gunman — in 2023, according to data from the Gun Violence Archive.
Ferguson told WDIV her daughter was getting on a bus on another part of campus when she started receiving texts about the shooting.
“It was like reliving Oxford all over again,” said Ferguson, who had been on the phone with her daughter when the young woman received texts about the latest mass shooting.
Ferguson said her daughter had started attending MSU about one month ago. The mother described her daughter as “unbelievably terrified” and said it was “really, really surreal” to relive such a horrific experience.
US Rep. Elissa Slotkin, a Democrat, said it was haunting to see a young person wearing an “Oxford Strong” sweatshirt in footage from MSU after Monday’s shooting.
“As a representative of Oxford, Michigan, I cannot believe that I’m here again doing this 15 months later,” Slotkin said during a news conference Tuesday. “And I am filled with rage that we have to have another press conference to talk about our children being killed in their schools.”
She added, “We have children in Michigan who are living through their second school shooting in under a year and a half. If this is not a wake-up call to do something, I don’t know what is.”
Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard confirmed deputies from his office responded to both the Oxford High and MSU shootings.
“So very many thoughts are running through my head right now after being on Michigan State’s campus last night during the tragedy,” he tweeted Tuesday.
“To our Oxford community, I know that this is terribly traumatic. Know that we are here for you.”
Ferguson told WDIV the latest tragedy is “just another hurdle to get over.”
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