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The former Arizona congresswoman Gabby Giffords stars in a new documentary chronicling her recovery from her attempted assassination during a mass shooting.
In 2011 she survived a mass shooting that killed six people and left 13 others wounded, including Giffords who was shot in the head.
'Gabby Giffords Won't Back Down,' gives viewers an in-depth view of Giffords' recovery and her advocacy against gun violence. At first, Giffords was hesitant to take part in a film about her life, but she saw it as an opportunity to shed light on issues that matter to her most.
Giffords wrote:
“There are always concerns when you welcome strangers with cameras into your home. But making this film seemed like a fitting way to share my journey with the world and bring attention to the issues that are important to me, like gun violence and aphasia.”
Along with Giffords' miraculous recovery and depictions of her strong connection to her husband, Senator Mark Kelly, the film also takes a hard look at U.S. gun violence. Giffords is a huge advocate for gun reform and does what she can to fight for change. She said:
“Transformative change doesn’t happen all at once. I know through my own recovery journey that it takes many incremental steps to reach your goals. If we gave up after every setback, there wouldn’t be any progress at all. When you’re surrounded by people who are fighting so hard to save lives, there’s no choice but to keep going and keep moving ahead.”
Due to her efforts on gun reform Giffords received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Joe Biden earlier this month.