Students across the nation walked out of class on Wednesday to bring attention to gun violence and honor the 17 people who were killed in a school shooting in Parkland, Fla., one month before.
Locally, Mt. Pleasant High School students attended an assembly and 17 Sacred Heart Academy students walked out for 17 minutes – one minute for each of the Florida victims.
At Sacred Heart, the students who walked out were facing disciplinary actions, including a fine and detention time.
At Mt. Pleasant High School, the assembly was student-planned and coincided with the national walkout in more than 2,500 schools across the country designed to create awareness of gun violence in schools.
It is heartening to see local youths becoming active in a cause they feel passionately about.
There has been a sea change in the United States in the last few weeks, as these young leaders – the leaders of tomorrow – start to become the leaders of today.
There are no easy, simple answers to school shootings.
But these youths are making their views known, loud and clear.
“We may be young, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have a voice,” Sacred Heart senior Ayesha Mohan said. “We have strength and we are unapologetic.”
The Sacred Heart students were in grades seven through 12.
Mohan cited the examples of Ghandi, Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks.
Mt. Pleasant High School Principal Denny Starnes said student interest in the power of protest and in learning about government and civics feels stronger now, similar to the Vietnam Era he grew up in.
The walkout on Wednesday was a powerful lesson in civics for all of the students, more powerful than anything they have read in a textbook.
They might have read about civil rights protests, about Rosa Parks refusing to sit in the back of the bus, or about the Vietnam War protests. They might have read about the U.S. Revolution and how our Constitution was shaped, amid much debate by the Founding Fathers.
In the last few days, they have learned how to apply that history to today. Free speech, the First Amendment, the Second Amendment, the right to peacefully assemble, the idea of demanding change and action from the government – these are no longer boring, random test topics.
Students are learning how to organize, how to be heard. They are watching and learning as they wait to see how state legislatures and Congress respond. It’s a sure bet that any legislation will be watched closely.
Mt. Pleasant Police Officer Brandon Bliss, who is the district’s liaison officer, also talked about how students can directly keep their building safe, including not propping doors open, holding each other accountable to end bullying behavior, and by reporting things that feel off.
Students and their families throughout mid-Michigan are doing just that, as they report possible threats.
Going forward, we hope this passion and activism continue.
Students about to turn 18 need to register to vote as soon as they are eligible. They need to develop a lifetime habit of voting in elections at all levels, local, state and national.
They have found their voice.
We look forward to how they use it.
