PARKLAND, Fla. — It’s been more than seven years since the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas Senior High School in Parkland.
Monday would have been the 25th birthday of Joaquin Oliver, one of the 17 victims killed in the tragedy.
His family is using AI to keep his memory alive on his special day.
“The person that went through the worst is Joaquin, not me,” said Manuel Oliver, Joaquin’s father. “I’m here. I have to be a father still.”
Oliver says even through the heartbreak of losing his son, he wants to show his memory is being kept alive.
“I like to remember my son not as the victim from Parkland, but as the 17-year-old kid that is becoming an icon,” Oliver said.
Monday evening, victims’ families and survivors called for an end to gun violence at a memorial wall in Joaquin’s honor in Washington, D.C.
His parents chose to welcome guests through an AI-generated video of Joaquin.
“It’s an amazing tool to raise Joaquin’s voice,” said Oliver. “What we have been doing is an extension of what Joaquin was already fighting for.”
This event came just hours after journalist Jim Acosta, with Joaquin’s parents’ permission, released an interview with Joaquin’s AI model.
It was a discussion about reducing gun violence.
Oliver emphasizes the AI version of Joaquin reflects what he stood for and is part of the legacy he leaves behind.
“These are not things we write and upload, these are things Joaquin wrote and we upload,” said Oliver.
He added that he and his wife also did this so they could hear their son’s voice again.
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