Christina-Taylor Green's Passion for Politics Lives on Through Emma McMahon
McMahon's mother was injured during the Tucson shooting last January.
June 13, 2011 -- In January, Christina-Taylor Green, 9, and Emma McMahon, 18, became connected forever by tragedy. Green and five others lost their lives in the Tucson shooting that injured 13 people, including Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and McMahon's mom.
"My mother shielded me from the bullets and was shot three times," said McMahon. "It wasn't until later that I realized how close he had been to shooting me. She had her arms right by my head, right where her arm was in front of my head she was shot."
McMahon and Green shared more than just a tragedy, although nine years apart they shared a common passion, a love of politics. Green's parents selected McMahon as the first recipient of a scholarship named in honor of their daughter.
"Like Christina-Taylor Green, my first experience with politics was in elementary school, eight years ago. My fourth grade class decided to write a proposal to build a dog park at our new city park," McMahon told ABC News. "Even though our plan seemed to have failed, I fell in love [with] the political process: the give and take of ideas."
The scholarship will allow McMahon to attend to attend Running Start's political leadership program this summer in Washington D.C.
McMahon had been a congressional page for Giffords, but never had the opportunity to take a photo with the congresswoman. She attended the "Congress on Your Corner" event with her mother on that January day in hopes of getting that picture with her heroine.
"Many people have asked me whether the shooting has changed my mind about wanting to go into politics. 'Absolutely not,' is my answer," McMahon wrote. "I still want to serve my country, and if she had lived, I think Christina-Taylor would have said the same thing."
Emma McMahon's Essay for the Christina-Taylor Green Memorial Scholarship:
Like Christina-Taylor Green, my first experience with politics was in elementary school, eight years ago. My fourth grade class decided to write a proposal to build a dog park at our new city park. Although we were only elementary students, we participated in all aspects of the project: surveying the land, drawing up proposals and writing speeches. We were successful in getting on the agenda of the town Council meeting. I was selected to be the one to present the proposal, so I practiced my speech carefully. We listened to the debate intently. In the end, the council decided to buy more police cars instead of building a dog park. Even though our plan seemed to have failed, I fell in love the political process: the give and take of ideas.
