Students from 200 cities across the country are planning walk-outs and protests on three dates this spring to demand Congress tighten gun control laws in the wake of the Valentine’s Day massacre in Parkland, Fla.
Teen responses are unlike others that have followed similar school shootings in recent years because students, not just lawmakers, are the ones who are calling for change.
Survivors of the shooting spree at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland have appeared daily on television networks to call for their lives, not gun rights, to be protected.
Many of these teen activists are minors and unable to vote in elections, prompting others to step in and help them organize and plot their next moves.
The Women’s March Youth EMPOWER organization plans the first event, referred to as #Enough, on the one-month mark after the shooting.
The Action Network’s event page states that students should walk out of their classrooms and school buildings for 17 minutes at 10 a.m. across every time zone on March 14. The 17 minutes will honor each of the 17 victims killed in Parkland.
As of Monday afternoon, more than 27,000 Facebook users have said they plan to participate, and another 100,000 others are interested.
A “March for Our Lives” event organized by gun control advocate Everytown and students from Marjory Stoneman will take place in Washington, D.C., 10 days later on March 24. Approximately 4,300 people have committed to attend.
Students will walk out of classes again on April 20th, the 19-year anniversary of the first major public school mass shooting, at Columbine, Colo. Thirteen people were killed in that attack.
Lane Murdock, a 15-year-old girl from Connecticut, created an online petition for the April event to engage more young people on the issue.
More than 64,500 attendees have signed up to participate.
One Marjory Stoneman student, 17-year-old Jaclyn Corin, will travel to Tallahassee, Florida’s capital, this Wednesday to urge state lawmakers to use the final three weeks of the legislative session to revise state mental health and gun laws in a way that would prevent a similar mass shooting in future, according to a report.
The Women’s March event website states that its purpose is to “protest Congress’ inaction to do more than tweet thoughts and prayers in response to the gun violence plaguing our schools and neighborhoods.
“We are not safe at school. We are not safe in our cities and towns. Congress must take meaningful action to keep us safe and pass federal gun reform legislation that address the public health crisis of gun violence. We want Congress to pay attention and take note: many of us will vote this November and many others will join in 2020.”
The site does not specify which types of gun control reforms it wants.
One bill that could be a starting point for lawmakers is a proposal by Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, which is sponsored by Democratic Sens. Chris Murphy and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, the state in which 20 children aged six and seven years old, and six adult staff, were shot dead at Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012.
The senators have proposed legislation that would boost gun background checks, and on Monday morning the White House said President Trump is “supportive” of this kind of reform effort.
Cornyn’s spokesman told the Washington Examiner on Monday, “it’s clear the president is interested in getting something done.”
The Fix NICS Act, a reference to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, would enhance the federal background check system and has been endorsed by the National Rifle Association.
After last week’s suspected killer 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz was flagged to federal officials for violent behavior and threats against his former high school, this bill may be what students are looking to see in their fight to improve safety on campuses, as well as public and private spaces across the country.
