A fourth-grader who survived last month’s school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, by smearing herself in her friend’s blood and pretending to be dead will be among those testifying before Congress next week in a hearing on the country’s gun violence epidemic.
Miah Cerrillo, 11, is slated to appear before the House Committee on Oversight and Reform on Wednesday, along with other family members personally affected by the recent mass shootings at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde and in a supermarket in Buffalo, New York.
Other people set to testify include Felix and Kimberly Rubio, the parents of Lexi Rubio, who was one of the 19 children killed in Uvalde; Roy Guerrero, a pediatrician who treated victims in the Uvalde shooting; and Zeneta Everhart, the mother of a Buffalo shooting survivor.
Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.), the chair of the committee, said in a statement that there have already been more than 200 mass shootings this year.
“After 19 innocent children and two teachers lost their lives in Texas just ten days after the mass shooting in my home state of New York, I’m turning my anger into action,” Maloney said. “Our hearing will examine the terrible impact of gun violence and the urgent need to rein in the weapons of war used to perpetrate these crimes. It is my hope that all my colleagues will listen with an open heart as gun violence survivors and loved ones recount one of the darkest days of their lives.”
She added, “This hearing is ultimately about saving lives, and I hope it will galvanize my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to pass legislation to do just that.”
The committee hearing is set for Wednesday at 10 a.m.