10. Years ago today, a gunman opened fire in a crowded movie theater
in Aurora, Colorado, just outside Denver, killing 12 people and wounding
70 more at the time. It was one of the worst mass shootings in the
country's history and sparked now familiar conversations about gun
control and mental health. A decade later, as William Branham reports
that massacre continues to take a daily toll on both individuals
and the community.
Late last night and all too familiar scene.
Community once again gathering to remember those lost to a mass shooting.
Our heavenly father. We are grateful for your presence here tonight.
This year. There have already been hundreds of these kinds of shootings
in this country.
In addition to the thousands of gun homicides and suicides that don't
make headlines.
It's about 12 30 in the evening here in Aurora, and this massacre
happened 10 years ago tonight, almost to the minute.
At a movie theater about a half a mile away from here. Gunmen dressed
in tactical gear went into a midnight screening of a Batman movie
and shot at moviegoer's 10 years ago. Right now,
So that's why they're holding this vigil here this evening.
John was the youngest of five Children. He was smart, funny and sarcastically
witty.
United in grief bound by trauma. For years, people here have come
together to mark what was lost that night. Among those being remembered
is Alex Sullivan, who was murdered in that theater when his 27th
birthday memorial is for all of you if you need to go somewhere to
remember
The 12 people and remember that day and all of that I am all for
doing what I can to help you with that, but I live in a place at
a space where I remember it every day. Alex's father is Colorado
State representative Tom Sullivan and Alex was a big Batman fan.
Favorite characters. Nightwing, who is Dick Grayson, who is actually
the first Robin
Before Alex's death, Sullivan was an Air Force veteran and a postal
worker. He collected comic books raised his two kids with his wife,
Terri, and was thinking about retirement that night in the theater
changed everything firearms are getting into the hands of those who
shouldn't have them in 2018, he entered ST politics on a promise
to try and move the needle on gun control.
In his first term when the red flag bill he sponsored was signed
into law by Governor Jared Police. Sullivan was there.
As always wearing his son's leather jacket.
Done.
Yeah.
We met Sullivan as he and his wife were setting up his latest campaign
office in their dining room this year running for state Senate seat
and still working on gun reform. He says his presence in the Legislature
is to remind lawmakers of the ugly reality of gun violence.
I'm not going to try to make you feel better. Um about you know what
happened that day? It wasn't you know, a loss of you know, they weren't
a little angels that you know, floated up to the sky and stuff. No,
they were kids. You know who are and some of them were just savagely
murdered, and and I think about it. In Alex's case, Alex was only
was only hit one time had a single shot that went through through
his who was left side went through his lung went through his kidney.
His heart came out his neck.
He died instantly.
That was it.
There's another family there who their son was hit nine times nine
times in that theater. With those armor piercing his his body was
torn apart. I don't know if I'm the same guy if I can talk to you,
if that's my son.
I feel unsafe like that's the best way to describe it is I never
feel safe. I always have to have a backup plan wherever we go
to answer it now married and a mother of 2 10 years ago, Long was
stationed at Buckley Air Force Base in Arora on a whim, she decided
to join a group of military friends at the Batman premiere.
And what happened that night has haunted her ever since I felt guilty
about surviving. I felt like it out because I walked out and I know
and, like one of my coworkers didn't right. Like I just felt guilty
that I did survive, you know, hobos.
She's carried that trauma for years, but eventually found an outlet
in weightlifting. It helps her cope with that guilt and stress. She
joined a nonprofit called Pull your Heart Out that uses lifting to
help people deal with their trauma.
Up.
I didn't really start talking about the this until two years ago.
Ah, years into this. You were still holding that at bay was just
pushing it down. So that way
And it was it was easier. I will let you know that sometimes, um,
to push it down, But not all the time, because I know would explode
into this like crazy meltdown that I would have, like a like a toddler.
But now that I'm actually processing, I can control it a lot more.
But and I've been talking about it a lot more because I realized
that maybe my story can help people number of ways people to deal
with trauma is the number of people who exist and experienced trauma
Doctor Aras Javan backed, directs the stress trauma and
Anxiety research clinic at Wayne State University.
He studies the impact mass shootings can have on both individuals
and communities. For some people, there's detachment for some people
is loss of hope. For some people, Basically, their perspective of
the world has changed the way they see.
Life the way they define experiences. Some people turn it to the
action. Some people channel their emotions into action. We have seen
some of the survivors of these events start becoming activists who
are trying to find solutions to make this better
community itself experienced trauma from one of these types of shootings.
I would say yes. When people can make a personal connection to these
experiences, it becomes more traumatic and more painful and horrifying
to people, let alone the fact that people also now have a less a
strong sense of safety and security because it did happen. It's important
to note that statistically.
Mass shootings are still rare, representing a very small percentage
of total US gun deaths. But Javan barked, says the repeated shootings
in public places like supermarkets, schools, malls and places of
worship shrink the number of spaces where people feel safe.
And they reinforce the fact that very little has been done to prevent
what happened to them to their loved ones into their community from
happening again.
That feeling of helplessness has a very big impact on people end
of the day. They feel that
We lost lives to this problem, and the problem is not being addressed.
They keep happening. It feels like they're interfaces all the time,
and they never get better. We're just getting having more and more
shootings that
I feel like there's just there's a high likelihood that it's going
to happen again. And so I try to prepare for that.
The numbers continue to go up. The firearms sales are going up. But
also there are people who are alive today because of the things that
we have been doing not just here in Colorado, but but but but in
other states, and that is just what you have to kind of hold on to
Back at the memorial. As in years past, this vigil ended with this
procession of first responders