LOS ANGELES – Two days before a shooter armed with an AR-15-style rifle killed an 8-year-old and a 10-year-old, and injured 21 others in a mass shooting at the Church of the Annunciation in Minneapolis, Manuel and Patricia Oliver embarked on a six-day drive from Florida to Los Angeles to take meetings in advance of the West Coast premiere of Manuel’s one-man show, “Guac.”
The show, which was co-written by Manuel and James Clements and directed by Michael Cotey, is about Manuel’s son, Joaquin “Guac” Oliver, who was killed on Valentine’s Day 2018 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., after being shot four times by a 19-year-old armed with an AR-15. Since then, there have been at least 400 more school shootings in America.
After the Minnesota tragedy – the 44th school shooting this year – Manuel did an interview with CNN while he was on the road, telling the anchors, “I believe that thoughts and prayers, this time, are out of the picture. These kids were actually praying … and still they were shot. So I know exactly what those parents are going through. It’s a terrible situation and it hasn’t stopped. That’s the worst part.”…