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The United States has experienced so many mass shootings that journalists usually do not wait after the attack. Reporters and photographers moved on to other stories, while the families and friends of the victims continued to grieve.
One year ago today, a gunman killed 19 children and two teachers at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas. Tamir Kalifa, a freelance photojournalist based in Austin, traveled to Uvalde shortly after the shooting — but he kept coming back. Tamir temporarily moved to Uvalde to live with the victim’s family, renting a 320-square-foot shipping container that he converted into a home.
We are providing today’s newsletter with some photos Tamir took last year and excerpts from interviews with his family.
“The anger cycle doesn’t match the media cycle,” Tamir said. “We moved on, but the family didn’t.”
Mark the holidays
Xavier “XJ” Lopez, 10, loves Christmas. They like to go to Uvalde’s annual extravaganza, an event with light displays, decorations and holiday music. So this past Christmas – the first without XJ – his parents, Abel Lopez and Felicha Martinez, and his brothers and sisters honored him.
A soundtrack from a children’s choir plays as they walk through the event. Then, they heard a loud explosion that sounded like a gunshot – an overloaded transformer had exploded. Felicha panicked and collapsed on the grass.
“Today should be fun,” he said in the evening. “But it’s just a reminder that our lives are broken.”
swim
The weekend before Tess Mata, 10, died, she told her older sister Iman that she wanted to learn to swim. Faith will begin her senior year at Texas State University, where students jump into the river on campus as a graduation tradition. Tess wants to join her sister.
On her graduation day this month, Iman walked with her family to the river. Then he jumps up, holding a photo of Tess. The photo is a sweet symbol – but also a painful reminder.
“Tess looks exactly like Iman,” said Veronica Mata, her mother. “So the other day he came and he said to me, he was like, ‘I’m sorry you have to see me every day and think about Tess.'”
Visit his grave
The grave where many victims are buried has become an anchor in the lives of family and friends. They gather together for grave birthdays and holidays. They mow the lawn, decorate the tombstones and lie in the lush grass that has been taken straight away.
Caitlyne Gonzales, 11, who lost many of her friends in the shooting, came to the cemetery to visit them. In the evening, they stopped at Jackie Cazares’ grave and played Taylor Swift music. They sing and dance and take selfies. For a moment, it was as if they were together again.
Protests and vigils
Many parents have found purpose in activism. Brett Cross, the uncle of 10-year-old Uziyah Garcia, who raised her as his son, spent 10 days camping outside the school district office in protest, along with other family members and supporters. He demanded that the school police officer be suspended for his deferred liability.
The protest ended when the district suspended operations of the school’s police department and laid off two officers.
Family members also testified before lawmakers at the state and federal levels and protested beyond Uvalde. Tamir said the image of Jackie Cazares’ parents, Javier and Gloria, at the annual gun violence vigil in Washington, DC, surrounded by other survivors of gun violence, was one of the most powerful moments he had seen.
“It’s important to see every member of this family as part of a national network of people affected by gun violence,” he said. “It’s something that grows every day.”
You can see more of Tamir’s photos here.
Tamir Khalifa contributed reporting and photography.
ART and IDEAS
The event continues
The Tony Awards will look different this year, but they will continue, group after group The playwright convinced the Hollywood writers’ union to strike ‘not to picket the show.
As part of the agreement, the awards show will not have scripted material. But it will feature the usual razzle-dazzle performance of this year’s musical crop. This is especially important for Broadway, which has struggled to attract audiences since the pandemic and relies on the Tonys to generate interest.
PLAY, WATCH, EAT
What to cook
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