EAST LANSING, Mich. — Green - a color often tied to the idea of hope.
As students at Michigan State University grappled with the lasting impact of a shooting in February 2023 that took the lives of three of their classmates - Alexandria Verner, Arielle Anderson and Brian Fraser - and injured five more, it was green that flooded the lawns and steps of the state capitol in Lansing as they called for things to change.
"The time for change was years ago after each previous mass shooting," one student said from the steps of the state capitol building last February. "But I refuse to be another statistic in the American education system and I refuse to wait until others come to realize that all those victims, they were worthy of life. You guys are worthy of life. I am worthy of life."
Pressed by students to take action, state lawmakers moved quickly in the wake of the shooting to pass legislation reforming the state's gun laws.
Bills instituting universal background checks for gun purchases, higher standards for gun storage and extreme risk protection orders to keep guns from those deemed a danger to themselves or others were all signed into law just months later.
Those new laws took effect on Tuesday, coinciding with the 1-year mark since the shooting.
Some in power have heralded the swift action over the last year.
But what about the students themselves?
One of those who experienced what happened that night was Clarissa Mata, part of MSU's Class of 2023.
"I obviously felt really scared," Mata told 13 ON YOUR SIDE.
"I also was really angry at everything that happened," she continued. "I was angry at the person who did it. I was angry that there weren't systems already in place to protect us."
As was the case for many who experienced the tragedy, Mata dealt with the pain in her own way.
For her, that meant her anger was quickly turned into action.
"I like to be productive with my anger, I don't like feeling angry or sad," Mata said. "And so I asked myself, 'What can I do?' I tried to go to work the next day, and it just didn't feel right."
It was then that she got a text from her friend, Charlotte Plotzke.
"My friend, Charlotte, texted me and she said, 'We need to do something.'"
Together, the two organized and became leaders amongst their peers in an effort to make their government listen.
A year later, Plotzke, now a senior at MSU, is reflecting on what was, for her, a year of action.
"The best thing about it is that there were so many of us doing this kind of thing," Plotzke said. "It was me and Clarissa, we had so many activists at MSU in general, like, so many students stepping up and doing this. So, just looking around at my peers and seeing that huge community of us who really were speaking out, we really were caring, we were organizing, we were testifying at House committees, you know, that was just really amazing to see that big effort, like, come into play."
But even now, what comes next for students like Plotzke and Mata?
"I think satisfied is a strong word," Mata said when asked how she viewed this year's legislative actions. "I'm definitely happy and impressed with what has been done and how fast it has been done, but I do think that this is just a first step."
For Plotzke, next steps take the shape of more mental health resources for students touched by this kind of violence, as well as a ban on assault-style weapons.
"Shootings that happen with assault weapons are so much more deadly," Plotzke said. "If the students at MSU were shot with an [automatic rifle] that survived, I don't know if they would have been alive."
It's a fight they say they continue in the names of those that were lost.
"At the end of the day, like, everything that I did for my advocacy is for the students that lost their lives," Plotzke said. "Like, they shouldn't have had to die that day. That's at the end of the day. That's the most important thing is just recognizing their life."
Even as the community continues forward, they say it's just as important to prioritize wellbeing, as not to lose oneself along the way.
"I don't blame anyone, for not feeling hopeful," Mata said. "But, that's also why I continue doing what I'm doing. I think it's really easy to feel like, there's nothing that can be done. And I see a lot of people around me who tell me, you know, that they're just tired and they're frustrated and they're giving up. And I just look at them and I'm like, 'That is so fair.'"
"But I do hope that they find comfort in seeing that there are other people who do continue to fight," Mata said.
The work they have been able to do, they said, stands as a testament to all.
"This definitely sets the precedent that we do have a voice and we do have a say in things," Plotzke said. "I think, a lot of the time, the government can seem super intimidating. But once you start talking to these legislators, they're just like us - especially at the state level. They're representing our communities, they might have kids the same areas as us. So, if this ever happens, just know that you don't have zero power."
But as they first look toward continuing to heal alongside their community, they turn to the spirit of the color green.
"I like to think there's always hope," Mata said.
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