The morning of August 27, 2025, was a tragic time for the people of Minneapolis. At the Annunciation Catholic School, teaching preschool through eighth grade, students were attending a worship service to commemorate the start of a new school year. But their day was suddenly turned upside down, when an attacker opened fire on the Church. A humble group of young children, bound together by religion, were victims of a heinous crime. 

Details regarding the attack are still under investigation by the FBI. This crime is considered to be an act of domestic terrorism and also even a hate crime against Catholics, as posted by FBI Director Kash Patel. Eighteen people were injured and two children died from this attack. The children were celebrating Mass when an attacker opened fire through the windows. The gunman fired on the group using a rifle, shotgun, and a pistol. A smoke bomb was also found at the crime scene by local authorities. 

Three adults, who were all parishioners, were also injured in the attack. The Hennepin County Medical Center chairman of emergency medicine, Thomas Wyatt, reported that a total of seven children, between the ages of six and fourteen years old, were rushed to the hospital. The remaining victims were injured but not hospitalized. While all of these patients were in critical condition, four of the children needed emergency surgery, during which the doctors at the hospital performed life-saving work. Thankfully, the spectacular effort of the doctors succeeded, and it is expected that the patients will survive this attack.

Out of the twenty reported casualties, the most devastating are the two children who were killed by this attack, Fletcher Merkel, aged eight, and Harper Moyski, aged ten. Fletcher’s father, Jesse Merkel, desperately holding back tears, said “Please remember Fletcher for the person he was and not the act that ended his life.” Harper was described by her family as a “bright, joyful, and deeply loved 10-year-old whose laughter, kindness, and spirit touched everyone who knew her.” Additionally during the attack, a 10-year old boy who survived this catastrophe said that he was saved by a friend who was lying on top of him. Unfortunately, his friend sustained significant injuries to his back and was sent to the hospital, but is doing better.

The police and the FBI have identified a suspect for this attack, Robin Westman, a 23-year-old from the local area. Westman had previously been a member of the Catholic church and  previously attended the Annunciation Catholic School. Officials believe that this information provides a connection between the attacker and the church, but no motive has been found at this time. Mary Grace Westman, the suspect’s mother, had also worked at the school in the past, but retired in 2021. Investigators made an attempt to contact her, but no response was received. In 2020, Westman changed their name from Robert to Robin, as reported by the Minnesota court records. Kristi Noem, the Homeland Security Secretary, referred to Westman as a “man claiming to be transgender.” Officials found that their social media and Youtube was also flooded with information regarding the attack and a live stream was supposedly scheduled to document the attack. Minneapolis Police Chief, Brian O’Hara said at a press conference that Westman “fantasized about the plans of other mass shooters” in her videos Since the shooting, these videos have been removed from Youtube.

A former classmate of Westman, Josefina Sanchez, was interviewed by an ABC Minneapolis reporter, who informed the press that Westman demonstrated red flags starting in grade school. Sanchez told reporters that her use of the Cyrillic alphabet in her notebooks, which was discovered on her social media, seems not to have been a recent occurrence– it began at an early age and was used so that no one else would have been able to understand the hatred she had. ABC News reported that Westman’s writings were full of hate and an obsession with the prospect of killing children. The shooter’s gruesome mental state was described in detail and their plans for the murder were written ad nauseum. 

Perhaps the most tragic part of this attack is that it is not the first. This is one of several attacks on children across the country and is a place of hatred and gun violence. Though devastating, the minute details of the event should not be focused on. Instead, the losses from both this event and others should ignite a fire to take action against gun violence across the country. Maggie Walker students were some of the first to take action in response to this tragedy. The school walkout was a way to tell legislators that gun violence does not belong in schools and students want hard and bold action, not cowardice. America’s flags are at half-staff too often and every time they go down, it signals a decline in the quality of our country. The Annunciation Catholic School should not be a dark place– it should become hope and a symbol of action.

Information retrieved from: BBC, ABC, CNN