‘Students have just had enough:’ Walkouts begin across the nation one month after Florida shooting
198 replies, posted
[quote=Washington Post]Students at thousands of schools across the country began walking out of class at 10 a.m. Wednesday to protest gun violence and to mark one month since a mass shooting left 17 dead at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla.
The nationally organized walkouts, most of which were expected to last 17 minutes in symbolic tribute to the Florida victims, are unprecedented in recent American history. Supporters say the protests represent a realization of power and influence by young people raised on social media who have come of age in an era of never-ending wars, highly publicized mass shootings and virulent national politics.
In the Washington region, hundreds of high school students from local districts gathered at the White House carrying signs protesting gun violence and those who oppose gun-control measures. Just before 10 a.m. the crowd fell silent and sat with fists and signs held high. They sat in silence for 17 minutes on Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the White House and planned to march later to the Capitol, where they hope to meet with lawmakers.
At the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, still recovering from a violent white supremacist rally last summer, about 2,000 students gathered on the Lawn, many wiping away tears as the names of the 17 Florida students were read aloud. The university’s chapel bells tolled 17 times as students bowed their heads in silence.
At Columbine High School in Colorado, where shooters killed 12 students and one teacher in 1999, students arriving early for school said they planned to take part in a demonstration at 10 a.m. local time.
Myriah Murren, 14, told her mother “I love you” as she was dropped off before sunrise at Columbine on Wednesday morning. The freshman said she planned to walk out of class later in the morning to send a message to students who survived the shooting in Florida that she and her classmates “care for them.”
“A lot of people will join in,” she said, adding that going to a school that was the site of one of the earliest mass school shootings makes her and her classmates more aware of the issue.
Walkout organizers say that close to 3,000 schools have indicated they will take part and that many more are planning events and memorials independently. On the social media pages for the Women’s March Youth Empower, the group helping to coordinate Wednesday’s walkouts, more than 150,000 students have indicated interest in taking part, said organizer Fatima Younis, a student at Frederick Community College in Maryland. The walkout, she said, is a message that political leaders need to hear.
“We want our Congress to know that some of us will be old enough to vote in the midterm elections, and the rest of us are going to be able to vote in 2020 or 2022, and they’re going to lose their job if they don’t do what we want to keep us safe,” Younis said. She said lawmakers need to increase the age for people to purchase weapons, ban assault-style weapons and demilitarize police forces.[/quote]
[url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/education/wp/2018/03/14/students-have-just-had-enough-walkouts-planned-across-the-nation-one-month-after-florida-shooting/]Source[/url]
"Haha, these kids are just trying to skip school!"
I mean if school shootings continue at this pace, in a generation or two the US will end up implementing gun laws like the rest of the world. People in power will change sooner or later, though gun manufacturers will feel the consequences of public pushing back much before the laws actually change.
Would totally be joining in the walkout if I didn’t graduate last year.
Hope this actually has an effect even though I dread it won’t
[QUOTE=Murkrow;53201038]I mean if school shootings continue at this pace, in a generation or two the US will end up implementing gun laws like the rest of the world. People in power will change sooner or later, though gun manufacturers will feel the consequences of public pushing back much before the laws actually change.[/QUOTE]
If society can't function because of mass shootings, things will have to change
It blows my mind that in a "first world " country like the US, children are afraid of dying in schools. Good on all of them for marching. Enough is enough.
I wonder if they'll ever protest these lawmakers who refuse to fund medical programs, schools, infrastructure and improve benefits for the unemployed and homeless. I wonder if they'll protest the lawmakers that profit off of privatized prisons, and those who take money from pharmaceutical companies that pay doctors to prescribe amphetamines and opioids to those who don't need them. I wonder if they'll protest the lawmakers that encourage harsh sentences on non-violent criminals, and make it easier for businesses to turn them away from getting jobs. I wonder if they'll protest the government organizations tasked with tracking down violent criminals and ensuring that they do not get access to firearms, while simultaneously refusing to allow for the public view of criminal records in regards to gun sales.
I wonder if they'll actually protest the cause of gun violence. Probably not.
It's easier to throw out an emotional argument and use buzzwords, rather than actually put lawmaker's noses in the piss-puddle and have them recognize the issues at hand.
“We want our Congress to know that some of us will be old enough to vote in the midterm elections, and the rest of us are going to be able to vote in 2020 or 2022, and they’re going to lose their job if they don’t do what we want to keep us safe,” Younis said. She said lawmakers need to increase the age for people to purchase weapons, ban assault-style weapons and demilitarize police forces.
Ok, so they aren't pushing for actual solutions to violence.
[QUOTE=Murkrow;53201038]I mean if school shootings continue at this pace, in a generation or two the US will end up implementing gun laws like the rest of the world. People in power will change sooner or later, though gun manufacturers will feel the consequences of public pushing back much before the laws actually change.[/QUOTE]
Or they will try to implement them and fail miserably because the people will refuse to listen.
[QUOTE=Zillamaster55;53201062]I wonder if they'll ever protest these lawmakers who refuse to fund medical programs, schools, infrastructure and improve benefits for the unemployed and homeless. I wonder if they'll protest the lawmakers that profit off of privatized prisons, and those who take money from pharmaceutical companies that pay doctors to prescribe amphetamines and opioids to those who don't need them. I wonder if they'll protest the lawmakers that encourage harsh sentences on non-violent criminals, and make it easier for businesses to turn them away from getting jobs. I wonder if they'll protest the government organizations tasked with tracking down violent criminals and ensuring that they do not get access to firearms, while simultaneously refusing to allow for the public view of criminal records in regards to gun sales.
I wonder if they'll actually protest the cause of gun violence. Probably not.[/QUOTE]
Of course not. They're wealthy and insulated from any of those concerns. They can afford the best healthcare. They can send their kids to expensive private schools. They use private planes and dedicated drivers to get around. They can afford whatever medication they need. If they commit a crime, they can afford to cover it up, or avoid jailtime at minimum. If their children commit a crime, they can use their insulated status to claim ignorance of the law and affluenza. They don't have to worry about violent criminals in their gated communities.
Most of these people live in an entirely different universe than what the average American sees. They don't see the run-down rural towns with collapsing water and road infrastructure. They don't see criminals - except on the news. They have no sense of real America. They're surrounded by lobbyists and wealthy peers who present them a policy perspective so incredibly skewed towards a vision of reality that only exists in their insulated, comfortable lives. They're governed entirely out of a selfish concern for their public image.
Remember how often we heard stories about lawmakers changing their stance on gay marriage when their children came out as gay? Expect the same thing here - once their kids are the ones being shot, they'll turn heel and change their mind. Why? Because they're so insulated from the reality of America that anything outside of their immediate personal and professional relationships is literally of zero concern. It's not on their radar until it affects them personally. It's a total lack of empathy born through privilege and wealth.
-Snip, TOTALLY misread that-
-snip-
[QUOTE=.Isak.;53201094]Of course not. They're wealthy and insulated from any of those concerns. They can afford the best healthcare. They can send their kids to expensive private schools. They use private planes and dedicated drivers to get around. They can afford whatever medication they need. If they commit a crime, they can afford to cover it up, or avoid jailtime at minimum. If their children commit a crime, they can use their insulated status to claim ignorance of the law and affluenza. They don't have to worry about violent criminals in their gated communities.
Most of these people live in an entirely different universe than what the average American sees. They don't see the run-down rural towns with collapsing water and road infrastructure. They don't see criminals - except on the news. They have no sense of real America. They're surrounded by lobbyists and wealthy peers who present them a policy perspective so incredibly skewed towards a vision of reality that only exists in their insulated, comfortable lives. They're governed entirely out of a selfish concern for their public image.
Remember how often we heard stories about lawmakers changing their stance on gay marriage when their children came out as gay? Expect the same thing here - once their kids are the ones being shot, they'll turn heel and change their mind. Why? Because they're so insulated from the reality of America that anything outside of their immediate personal and professional relationships is literally of zero concern. It's not on their radar until it affects them personally. It's a total lack of empathy born through privilege and wealth.[/QUOTE]
And that's what these students need to recognize as the things they should protest. I'm not trying to be "Well why don't they care about X!", but I kinda have to be. Pushing for assault weapons bans or increased age limits doesn't really affect much when a majority of firearm crime is handguns, committed by gangs.
If these students were to attack the lawmakers on those grounds, basically surrounding them in a metaphorical pincer maneuver, they'd probably make some change. Instead, the Republicans and NRA will use this as ammo (no pun intended) to be further combative against the Democrats, further thrusting a divide politically.
Meanwhile a bunch of conservatives who hopefully don't have children of their own are bitching about how THEY would've gotten beaten by their parents or thrown in jail if they'd dared to question a horrible status quo, like that's a positive way to look at this and it helps their argument against kids missing half a day of class
[QUOTE=Zillamaster55;53201062]I wonder if they'll ever protest these lawmakers who refuse to fund medical programs, schools, infrastructure and improve benefits for the unemployed and homeless. I wonder if they'll protest the lawmakers that profit off of privatized prisons, and those who take money from pharmaceutical companies that pay doctors to prescribe amphetamines and opioids to those who don't need them. I wonder if they'll protest the lawmakers that encourage harsh sentences on non-violent criminals, and make it easier for businesses to turn them away from getting jobs. I wonder if they'll protest the government organizations tasked with tracking down violent criminals and ensuring that they do not get access to firearms, while simultaneously refusing to allow for the public view of criminal records in regards to gun sales.
I wonder if they'll actually protest the cause of gun violence. Probably not.
It's easier to throw out an emotional argument and use buzzwords, rather than actually put lawmaker's noses in the piss-puddle and have them recognize the issues at hand.[/QUOTE]
"but what about this? but what about that? but what about [I]this[/I]?"
You're sounding a lot like Fox News right now.
[QUOTE=Zillamaster55;53201109]And that's what these students need to recognize as the things they should protest. I'm not trying to be "Well why don't they care about X!", but I kinda have to be. Pushing for assault weapons bans or increased age limits doesn't really affect much when a majority of firearm crime is handguns, committed by gangs.
If these students were to attack the lawmakers on those grounds, basically surrounding them in a metaphorical pincer maneuver, they'd probably make some change. Instead, the Republicans and NRA will use this as ammo (no pun intended) to be further combative against the Democrats, further thrusting a divide politically.[/QUOTE]
And the worst part is it's going to embolden the NRA rather than watch it wither and die. It's like creating the enemy you hate.
no one at my college did it
i did it for the 17 minute thing but its just gonna be one person standing outside if i did it all day
rip
[QUOTE=Scot;53201112]"but what about this? but what about that? but what about [I]this[/I]?"
You're sounding a lot like Fox News right now.[/QUOTE]
Fox News doesn't recognize a single one of the problems that I presented.
Fox News does not care about crime unless its non-White people, does not care about addicts, does not care about the unemployed, homeless, or students. Fox News takes benefits from the companies and organizations that I've mentioned in that post and in the past.
I know you think that I'm going for whataboutism, but I'm trying to get the point across that going for assault weapons bans and other feel-good legislation will not solve the problems in the short or the long run. The underlying issues of gun violence are still there.
[QUOTE=Zillamaster55;53201122]Fox News doesn't recognize a single one of the problems that I presented. Fox News does not care about crime unless its non-White people, does not care about addicts, does not care about the unemployed, homeless, or students.[/QUOTE]
I was really referencing [URL="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whataboutism"]this[/URL]. Fox News are notorious for employing it.
[QUOTE=Zillamaster55;53201122]Fox News doesn't recognize a single one of the problems that I presented.
Fox News does not care about crime unless its non-White people, does not care about addicts, does not care about the unemployed, homeless, or students. Fox News takes benefits from the companies and organizations that I've mentioned in that post and in the past.
[B]I know you think that I'm going for whataboutism, but I'm trying to get the point across that going for assault weapons bans and other feel-good legislation will not solve the problems in the short or the long run. The underlying issues of gun violence are still there.[/B][/QUOTE]
the nice thing about a movement like this is that it doesn't have to / won't stop with this initial protest.
imo, we can only hope they carry their momentum to the issues addressed in others threads / earlier in this thread. that would be ideal.
[QUOTE=Scot;53201131]I was really referencing [URL="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whataboutism"]this[/URL]. Fox News are notorious for employing it.[/QUOTE]
It is not whataboutism to want people to focus on the underlying issues that are serious problems plaguing society, rather than go for surface level legislation that would affect only a tiny, tiny portion of gun crime in the United States. Mobilized people can easily sway things in the government, as seen in Alabama, Virginia and (hopefully) Pennsylvania.
If these students pushed on those fronts, the politicans wouldn't have much of a shield to hide behind. If someone says "ban assault weapons", they can throw up all sorts of emotional defenses and drag the conversation through the mud. If someone says, well, anything that I mentioned above, they get tongue tied.
[QUOTE=Zillamaster55;53201135]It is not whataboutism to want people to focus on the underlying issues that are serious problems plaguing society, rather than go for surface level legislation that would affect only a tiny, tiny portion of gun crime in the United States. Mobilized people can easily sway things in the government, as seen in Alabama, Virginia and (hopefully) Pennsylvania.
If these students pushed on those fronts, the politicans wouldn't have much of a shield to hide behind. If someone says "ban assault weapons", they can throw up all sorts of emotional defenses and drag the conversation through the mud. If someone says, well, anything that I mentioned above, they get tongue tied.[/QUOTE]
The hardest thing, I think, will not be spreading the movement too thin and fizzling out. Each issue should be tackled independently, one after another.
We'll see where it all goes from here.
[QUOTE=Zillamaster55;53201062]I wonder if they'll ever protest these lawmakers who refuse to fund medical programs, schools, infrastructure and improve benefits for the unemployed and homeless. I wonder if they'll protest the lawmakers that profit off of privatized prisons, and those who take money from pharmaceutical companies that pay doctors to prescribe amphetamines and opioids to those who don't need them. I wonder if they'll protest the lawmakers that encourage harsh sentences on non-violent criminals, and make it easier for businesses to turn them away from getting jobs. I wonder if they'll protest the government organizations tasked with tracking down violent criminals and ensuring that they do not get access to firearms, while simultaneously refusing to allow for the public view of criminal records in regards to gun sales.
I wonder if they'll actually protest the cause of gun violence. Probably not.
It's easier to throw out an emotional argument and use buzzwords, rather than actually put lawmaker's noses in the piss-puddle and have them recognize the issues at hand.[/QUOTE]
I don't see how it's realistic to expect these guys to protest 50 different things instead of one thing.
[QUOTE=Lambeth;53201150]I don't see how it's realistic to expect these guys to protest 50 different things instead of one thing.[/QUOTE]
Because that "one thing" has been debated to death and was shown to be feel-good, and has no real solutions to real problems. Banning assault weapons does not stop mass shootings, and raising the age of getting a firearm does not stop straw purchases, theft, or just someone taking a gun from their parents who didn't store it properly. Assault weapons and magazine bans did not stop Columbine or Virginia Tech.
[QUOTE=Zillamaster55;53201157]Because that "one thing" has been debated to death and was shown to be feel-good, and has no real solutions to real problems. Banning assault weapons does not stop mass shootings, and raising the age of getting a firearm does not stop straw purchases, theft, or just someone taking a gun from their parents who didn't store it properly.[/QUOTE]
If you say so dude.
[QUOTE=Scot;53201164]If you say so dude.[/QUOTE]
Okay do you have an argument to present, or are you just going to continue acting snide.
[QUOTE=Zillamaster55;53201170]Okay do you have an argument to present, or are you just going to continue acting snide.[/QUOTE]
Your mind is made up so I don't really see a point.
[QUOTE=Scot;53201179]Your mind is made up so I don't really see a point.[/QUOTE]
So why even post? All it does is cement people further into their camps if posters go around leaving offhand remarks and being generally combative. I have simply presented the underlying issues of gun violence that should be addressed, while criticizing the main motive of the protest.
If anything, I fear this protest will be turned on its head by the NRA and the GOP, who will most definitely use it as a propaganda piece against students rights and public demonstration.
[QUOTE=Zillamaster55;53201109]And that's what these students need to recognize as the things they should protest. I'm not trying to be "Well why don't they care about X!", but I kinda have to be. Pushing for assault weapons bans or increased age limits doesn't really affect much when a majority of firearm crime is handguns, committed by gangs.[/QUOTE]
This is a pretty bad argument, because handguns, while still deadly, aren't as deadly as assault rifles. If the ban of assault rifles and other similar caliber weapons can reduce the casualties when a shooting happens, it should be done. I already posted [URL="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/04/health/parkland-shooting-victims-ar15.html"]this link here[/URL] in the last thread, but I guess it's relevant again.
[QUOTE=Zillamaster55;53201170]Okay do you have an argument to present, or are you just going to continue acting snide.[/QUOTE]
So far I haven't seen a decent argument from you or any other pro gun peeps on FP.
[QUOTE=NoOneKnowsMe;53201191]This is a pretty bad argument, because handguns, while still deadly, aren't as deadly as assault rifles. If the ban of assault rifles and other similar caliber weapons can reduce the casualties when a shooting happens, it should be done. I already posted [URL="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/04/health/parkland-shooting-victims-ar15.html"]this link here[/URL] in the last thread, but I guess it's relevant again.[/QUOTE]
I am not disputing the fact that a rifle does tend to be more deadly than a handgun. What I'm saying is that rifle crime is a tiny factor of gun violence in the United States.
According to the FBI [url=https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2014/crime-in-the-u.s.-2014/tables/expanded-homicide-data/expanded_homicide_data_table_8_murder_victims_by_weapon_2010-2014.xls]more people[/url] were killed by "Personal Weapons (Hands, Fists, Etc.)" than rifles, while handguns made up the majority of gun crime.
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