Not forgotten. Amy Schumer responded this past weekend to an open letter about last month's movie theater shooting in Lafayette, La.
The comedienne, 34, touched on the tragedy that took place on July 23 during a screening of her acclaimed new comedy hit Trainwreck after a woman named Sarah Clements published "An Open Letter to Amy Schumer" on Medium.com. Clements is an advocate for gun violence prevention with personal ties to the cause, as her mother survived the 2012 school shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
Clements wrote directly to Schumer in the letter, calling on the rising comedy star to take up her cause.
"Your movie—which was so well-received, so brilliant, so you—will now forever have this shooting attached to it," Clements writes to Schumer. "You’ve been caught in the middle of our country’s terrifying, unending war with itself, our sick and twisted relationship with the gun lobby, which tells us we need guns for anyone, anywhere, anytime. Search your movie Trainwreck on Google and a scroll-down suggestion will now be 'Trainwreck shooting.'"
"I know the guilt, the sadness, the hole in your heart you’re feeling. I know the crushing anxiety you have for Jillian Johnson and Mayci Breaux and their families," she continued, naming the two victims who died in the shooting. "I know the sudden feeling that you are not safe anywhere anymore, the numbness that whisks through your limbs and makes you forget that you’re human and that you’re in control. I know all of this. Not because I was in your exact shoes, but because I own a different make of them."
@cdickason11 @sfclem Her name was Mayci, not Marci and I think about her and Jillian everyday. Don't worry I'm on it. You'll see.
— Amy Schumer (@amyschumer) August 1, 2015
An earlier version of the article seemingly improperly identified the late Breaux as Marci, as Schumer responded to a Saturday, Aug. 1 tweet with a link to the piece, writing, "Her name was Mayci, not Marci and I think about her and Jillian everyday."
Clements went on to extol Schumer for being a strong role model for the Millennial generation and asked that she join the movement by "[demanding] change" and "[being] the voice of our generation and for women."
Schumer addressed the call to action in her earlier tweet as well, adding, "Don't worry I'm on it. You'll see."
While Schumer didn't reveal just what she has in store, she sent her heartfelt condolences to the victims and their families immediately following the shooting last month. "My heart is broken and all my thoughts and prayers are with everyone in Louisiana," she tweeted at the time, inspiring fellow comedienne Margaret Cho to respond, "We are all heartbroken. But you heal us by being you. Thank you."
UPDATE: Schumer announced her push to combat gun violence in a press conference on Monday, Aug. 3. The comedienne is working with her cousin, New York Sen. Chuck Schumer, on a new initiative with proposed legislation on the issue. The three-part plan focuses on background checks, and increased funding for mental health care and substance abuse treatment programs.
"Enough is enough," the Trainwreck star said. "These shootings have got to stop. I don’t know how else to say it."
Sen. Schumer also chimed in, questioning at the event, "How many breaking news flashes will it take for Congress to act? How many tears? How many lives lost?"
