Echoes of tragedy: Parents use AI to amplify voices of gun violence victims

In 2018, a year marked by a series of devastating school shootings across the United States, a group of grieving parents found themselves united by a shared tragedy, woven with stories of lives cut short and families left to grapple with unimaginable losses.

As that year unfolded, and in the years that followed, other tragic events, including shootings, a child’s suicide, and an accidental death involving an unsecured gun, only deepened their collective pain.

Bound by this grief, the families of six victims came together with a common goal: to ensure that their children's voices would not be silenced.

Epidemic of gun violence

The ongoing tragedy of gun violence in the US has cast a long shadow over communities across the country.

According to data from the Gun Violence Archive (GVA) – which has tracked such incidents since 2013 – there have been 288 mass shootings in the US this year alone till July 12, 2024, resulting in over 300 deaths and close to 1,300 injuries.

While these numbers reflect a potential decrease compared to previous years, the crisis remains severe, with the country still averaging more than one mass shooting per day and could surpass 500 mass shootings for the fifth consecutive year.

Despite the growing death toll and growing calls for a ban on the usage of assault rifles, political action has been slow.

Proposed measures are often hindered by staunch opposition from powerful groups like the National Rifle Association (NRA) and political figures who emphasise Second Amendment rights.

In response to the growing crisis, various states have enacted "red flag" laws, which allow law enforcement or family members to petition courts to remove firearms from individuals temporarily deemed a danger to themselves or others. However, these laws have faced significant opposition and are not yet implemented nationwide.

This persistent gridlock, coupled with the refusal of political figures like Republican candidate Donald Trump to ban assault weapons, has left families of gun violence victims in a perpetual state of grief, fighting tirelessly for change amidst an often unresponsive political landscape.

Birth of ‘The Shotline’

Their goal eventually set the stage for a revolutionary campaign to emerge— the creation of ‘The Shotline’, an innovative platform designed to recreate the voices of gun violence victims and advocate for change.

The campaign, launched on Valentine’s Day to mark the sixth anniversary of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting—a tragedy that claimed the lives of 17 people, including 14 students and three staff members—has since grown into a nationwide movement.

“I’m back today because my parents used AI to recreate my voice to call you. Other victims like me will be calling too, again and again, to demand action. How many calls will it take for you to care? How many dead voices will you hear before you finally listen?” said an AI-generated version of Joaquin Oliver on the website. He was 17 when he died in the 2018 tragedy at Parkland.

Besides Joaquin Oliver, the website features AI-generated audio clips from five others: Mike Vaughan, who died by suicide aged 30 in 2014; Akilah DaSilva, who was 23 when he was killed in a 2018 shooting at a Waffle House near Nashville; Ethan Song, who accidentally shot himself with an unsecured gun in 2018 at the age of 15; Jaycee Kemachet-Webster, who was fatally shot at 20 in Montgomery County, Maryland, in 2017; and Uzi Garcia, killed aged ten during the Uvalde, Texas, school shooting in 2022.

The AI-generated voices of the victims share details about their lives and the circumstances of their deaths while urging Congress to pass gun legislation.

The website visitors can input their ZIP code and send any of these recordings directly to their local representative. So far, nearly 157,419 AI calls have been submitted to representatives through the Shotline. ‘The Shotline’ sends these messages as automated calls to senators and House members who support the National Rifle Association and oppose stricter gun laws.

In a recent interview with Democracy Now, the parents of Joaquin ‘Guac’ Oliver emphasised the importance of using technology to amplify the stories of victims, making it clear that their fight for gun reform is far from over.

Their determination underscores the ongoing impact of The Shotline as it continues to mobilise a nation toward meaningful change.

Spreading the message

"I bawled, and I just listened to it over and over because this is the only thing I got back since May 24," said Brett Cross to ABC13, father of Uziyah, who was killed at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde. "This is the only time that I have heard him since then, and that was 632 days ago."

"Our children's voices were taken away when they lost their lives, and now we're able to recreate them and use them to call on these politicians who you know have been hearing us but not listening to us."

This year, the parents of the Parkland shooting victims spearheaded a bus tour to promote both a memorial and a mobile advocacy platform, bringing the Shotline’s message directly to communities across the nation.

They shared their personal stories and highlighted the stark differences in gun violence across the country.

“We come from a place where gun violence is a problem, but you will never see a 19-year-old with an AR-15 getting into a school and shooting people,” Manuel Oliver, father of Joaquin, told the AP news agency.