On March 14th, 2018, thousands of students and teachers across the country walked out of their schools at approximately 10 a.m. to demand change to take place on the current gun laws. Exactly one month after the Parkland Florida shooting where 17 people lost their lives as victims of gun violence, students are still raising their views on this controversial topic.
I too was one of these students who could be seen walking out of their classroom.
I am not one to typically share their political beliefs in public or talk about them at all for that matter, but the current laws for gun control need to change. As I wrote in my article last week, I am not for taking away the rights to own a gun. I am for, however, changing the current laws.
So why exactly were students and teachers walking out of their classrooms? The #Enough! National School Walkout, organized by the Women's March Youth Empower, was not only put on to commemorate the one-month anniversary of the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School but to address school safety and gun violence.
At my school, Gustavus Adolphus College, students gathered at the entrance of our college and held 17 minutes of silence. These 17 minutes were for each of the victims in Parkland. After this moment had passed the name, age, and student/employment status was read allowed. This moment of silence could be heard across the nation.
The current population of students at school has had to grow up watching more tragedies within our schools than previous generations. When will the lives of our students become more important the guns? We need to protect children, not guns.
From New York to Ohio, California to Minnesota, these students are working to make a change. I've always heard adults telling us to reach for our dreams and to never stay silent. Here we are, fighting to make a change. Afterall, we are the future leaders of America and we want to feel safe when we walk into a school.
We are the future. We are the now. We are the generation to change the future.
The protests against gun violence will not be ending here. In fact, on March 24th, the Parkland student survivors have organized another march called "March for Our Lives." While the main march will be taking place in Washington D.C. there are multiple marches that will be seen across the nation. On April 20th, on the 19th anniversary of the Columbine High School shooting, yet another march will be taking place.
Many may say that these marches will simply do nothing, but I believe that this is just the beginning of a major change in our nation.
After all, Enough is Enough.
