Parkland attack fueled big shift in America’s gun politics

Last year’s shooting at a Florida high school sparked a movement among a younger generation angered by gun violence and set the stage for a significant shift in America’s gun politics.

Thousands of student protesters took to the streets and inspired hashtags. Candidates were emboldened too. Many of them confronted the issue in last year’s elections and were rewarded with victory over incumbents supported by the National Rifle Association. That helped Democrats take back control of the House.

Peter Ambler is executive director of the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. He calls the change “a tectonic shift.”

The political landscape began to transform just days after a former student shot and killed 17 students and adults at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.