On Wednesday at 10 a.m., students gathered outside the Hall of Excellence to honor the 17 students killed a month earlier at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida and protest the inaction of Congress on gun violence.
Junior Christian Omoruyi stood above the crowd as he addressed the need for the students to come together. "Seventeen lives were lost, and today provides an opportunity for us to come together and honor those seventeen victims," said Omoruyi to a divided crowd.
Every student had their own opinion on the issue. While some students advocated that "Guns don't kill people, people kill people," others wanted stricter gun control. "I don't think that kids under eighteen or anyone in general should be able to have war weapons. No one needs a semi-automatic rifle," said senior Aria Schofield.
"I'm honoring the seventeen lives to participate in the moment of silence and how we should never go to school worrying [that] some tragedy may happen," said senior Allyssa Scott.
"It's a scary idea to think that someone can walk into school and start shooting while we have no protection," said senior Stacy Nugent. "It's a problem."
Organizers of the walkout passed out flyers encouraging students to contact their representatives regarding this issue. "We need to have our voices heard," said senior Andrew Kanwit. "No matter if you're for strengthening the Second Amendment or taking away guns... we all want our voices to be heard. The best way for our voices to be heard is to register to vote."
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Contributors: Katelyn Mitchell