HARTFORD, Conn. — A brother of Victoria Soto, one of the teachers slain at Sandy Hook Elementary School, is planning to attend the president’s State of the Union address next week, a Connecticut congresswoman said Friday.
Carlos Soto, whose sister died trying to shield her students from the gunman inside the school, will attend as the guest of U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro, the congressman said.
“Having Carlos at the State of the Union will be a powerful reminder that the victims of gun violence are not statistics,” DeLauro said. “And they are not even just the people who are physically wounded by a bullet. They are parents, siblings, families, co-workers and friends.”
A gunman killed six staff members and 20 first-grade students inside the school in Newtown, Conn., on Dec. 14 before committing suicide. He also killed his mother at their home.
In his address on Tuesday, President Barack Obama is expected to try to rally support for his calls to ban certain weapons and enact universal background checks for gun buyers.
Officials in Victoria Soto’s hometown of Stratford, Conn., renamed a school last month in her honor.
Carlos Soto attends Stratford High School, where Victoria graduated in 2003.