One of the nation's deadliest mass shootings, a generation later The April 16, 2007, shooting at Virginia Tech, in which thirty-two students and professors were murdered, was at the time the worst mass shooting in contemporary US history. In Survivor Nation, Thomas Kapsidelis returns to this tragedy, now twenty years in the past, and introduces us to the students of April 16, long ago launched into adulthood and dealing with the continuing effects of their own trauma and physical injuries as they navigate safe paths for their sons and daughters. He also tells the stories of parents whose work for reforms has been unceasing. As Kapsidelis shows, much of the leadership on the legislative front and to generate resources for physical and emotional healing is coming from survivors. His book takes readers inside these personal histories, from debates in state capitols to work behind the scenes to help other gun violence survivors get the help they need. Although centered on the Virginia Tech tragedy, the crisis of violence so powerfully explored in this book pervades contemporary life and will resonate with readers everywhere.
