By Gwen Biggs
Thousands of high schools across the nation walked out of class this past Wednesday to protest gun violence and promote the need for stricter gun laws. This event was a historic display of disapproval of the lack of legislative progression on the government’s part.
Throughout the United States, each walkout lasted 17 minutes long, including 17 seconds of silence for the fallen victims of the nations most recent tragic shooting, Parkland High School in Florida, where gunman left seventeen dead.
The protest opened with students silently standing, holding up posters with victims names, and the movements slogan “#ENOUGH.” Brianna V. and Micah D. sang along to Anna Absalom on the piano, playing “Shine,” a song survivors of the shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School’s drama club wrote in the wake of the shooting.
Rayshon Walker recited a poem he wrote, titled “Enough is Enough,” expressing his opinions on the far too common school shootings. He wrote, “Sandy Hook, Columbine, Parkland and more weigh on the souls of more than one can hold. Spirits have been stolen and the substance of humanity decreased. Change starts with you and it starts with me. Enough is enough.”
“Enough is Enough” soon became the motto of Whetstone’s open mic, utilized to speak out against gun violence and assert opinions from a variety of viewpoints.
Many stated their intolerance with the deficiency of action on stricter gun laws and the fact that our generation must step up and educate ourselves in order to make substantial change.
A newsletter was passed out later that week informing students how to register to vote, and alternative ways to make a change.
If you want to get involved and do not know where to start, test “RESIST” to 50409 to write and deliver a message to your representative in Congress in under two minutes.
