Emma Gonzalez

“Trees face many difficulties, what with deforestation and pollution, but that didn't stop me from wanting to be one - to just stop feeling and live.”

“We're not saying 'no guns.' We are saying we want to regulate semi-automatic weapons and the accessories that make them fully automatic because fully automatic weapons are banned.”

“Meeting with people is awesome in every sense of the word. It can inspire you with glee. It can inspire you with happiness. It can inspire you with sadness and melancholy, but also hope.”

“We need to digitize gun-sales records, mandate universal background checks, close gun-show loopholes and straw-man purchases, ban high-capacity magazines, and push for a comprehensive assault weapons ban with an extensive buyback system.”

“Any time I had my hair in a ponytail, it would give me a headache by the end of the day.”

“Crying is a kind of communication, and communication is awesome.”

“If I wear a hat and sunglasses, not as many people recognize me.”

“Mental illness and gun violence are not directly correlated, but when the two go hand in hand, Americans - often children - lose their lives.”

“You might not be a big fan of politics, but you can still participate. All you need to do is vote for people you believe will work on these issues, and if they don't work the way they should, then it is your responsibility to call them, organize a town hall, and demand that they show up - hold them accountable.”

“Teachers do not need to be armed with guns to protect their classes; they need to be armed with a solid education in order to teach their classes.”

“I was born in 1999, just a few months after 13 people were left dead after a shooting at Columbine High School in Colorado.”

“I shaved my head a week or two before senior year. People used to ask me why, and the main reason is that having hair felt terrible.”

“In Florida, to buy a gun, you do not need a permit, you do not need a gun license, and once you buy it, you do not need to register it. You do not need a permit to carry a concealed rifle or shotgun. You can buy as many guns as you want at one time.”

“I'm so indecisive that I can't pick a favorite color, and I'm allergic to 12 things.”

“I feel like in my senior year of high school, I had my clothes a lot more figured out. I had my hair figured out.”

“Many people in this world are not raised to understand the concept of consent, in all walks of life, and it's important that abusers of consent not be treated as victims when they are rightfully exposed.”

“I'm a mess, and I'm messy. I'm very, very bad at organizing myself.”

“The problem of gun violence goes beyond the countless demographic differences between people.”

“Since the time of the Founding Fathers, and since they added the Second Amendment to the Constitution, our guns have developed at a rate that leaves me dizzy.”

“Get out and vote. If you can't vote, then register other people to vote. Get people to the polls; make sure that people who need to vote can vote.”