In 2019, Dove Cameron lost her dear friend and “Descendants” co-star Cameron Boyce. Boyce died from an epileptic seizure, and Cameron told Seventeen that it was a terrible shock when she heard the news from her mother the next day. “If there was a word stronger than devastated that could describe the depth of pain that I was feeling, I would use it,” she said.
To honor their son, Boyce’s parents founded the Cameron Boyce Foundation, People reports. The foundation launched its first project in the form of a social media campaign to end gun violence, something that Boyce himself had been planning on doing. The campaign, called “Wielding Peace,” encouraged people to take pictures of themselves holding objects like household items, instruments, or any relic that is dear to their heart as if they were holding a gun. Along with the pictures, they were also encouraged to share the hardships they’ve experienced.
Many of Boyce’s friends and co-stars joined the movement, including Cameron, but she took it a step further and got a tattoo in his honor as well — a pistol with a rose emerging from its barrel. She shared with Refinery29 that she actively advocates for gun control in honor of Boyce, explaining that she feels it’s important to speak up when it comes to these issues because of the huge platform she’s been given.
