#NationalWalkOutDay: 17 lives. 17 minutes. 3,000 walkouts.
While we were celebrating Aamir Khan’s birthday and mourning the death of Stephen Hawkings, thousands of students across the United States walked out of their classrooms to demand an end to the omni-present gun violence in the country. It’s almost been a month since the horrific mass shooting which took the lives of 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.
And what did the Trump administration do about it?
Well, in his response, he said that the teachers should arm themselves with guns so that they can protect the schools. WOW.
And what did the students at the US do about it?
Well, here is what they did.
Yes. Students from elementary, middle and high schools marched out of their classes at 10 am (local time) on 14 March for the National Student Walkout. And they all had one common goal – to honour the one-month anniversary of the 17 lives that were lost and to push the lawmakers for a change in the gun laws of the state.
The walkout, organised by Women’s March Youth Empower, was accompanied by the tagline #EnoughIsEnough and lasted for at least 17 minutes. One minute each for the 17 people who died on that unfortunate day.
From making signs, observing moments of silence, handing out orange ribbons for gun violence awareness, reading poems and essays about the personal scars that gun violence has left behind – each student stood in solidarity in their own way.
While some schools went ahead and supported the organised movement that involved student activism for the first time, others held opinions of their own as they barred and penalised their students.
Even Viacom cable networks which includes MTV, Nickelodeon, BET and Comedy Central suspended its programming for 17 minutes to honour the victims of the Parkland shooting and to stand in solidarity with the movement.
Even MTV put out a live stream on their YouTube channel where they dedicated their 17 minutes to those 17 lives lost.
So this is what the youth does when they set their mind on one thing – CHANGE! Change the gun laws of the land because we don’t want any more victims.
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