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On Sept. 5, students from over 250 schools across the United States performed walkouts, organized by Students Demand Action (SDA), to advocate for stricter gun control from legislators and lawmakers.
SDA is a nationwide organization consisting of high school and college students, aiming to end gun violence. In response to the recent shootings at the Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Aug. 28, where 21 were injured and two passed during a service for the first week of school, SDA named Sept. 5 a national walkout date.
Elise Row, senior, is the president of the high school’s SDA club. The club hosted the walkout at the high school at noon, where students met on the baseball field to come together and advocate against gun violence.
“I think that [schools are] a place where people should be able to prepare for their futures through getting an education and making friends, and this just shouldn’t be something that’s a threat at all. We should be able to feel safe,” Row said.
Helping Row organize the walkout was Rakhee Braunstein, sophomore, the vice president of SDA. One of Braunstein’s goals is to help students be aware of the issue.
“I shouldn’t be scared to go to school. I shouldn’t be worried about a loud noise that’s happening in the hallway. I shouldn’t be scared of someone screaming. I should just be able to walk to school and have a nice day and learn all the things that I’m supposed to,” Braunstein said. “That’s why I was really interested in doing [a walkout], because I really wanted to make the environment more safe for everyone.”
In the 21st century alone, there have been 651 recorded cases of school shootings. Mika Baksay, senior, is a transfer student from Ingraham High School, located in Seattle, Washington. During her time there, Baksay experienced a shooting during her freshman year in 2022, which ended in the passing of a student.
“I heard what we thought was seven lockers, but it was actually seven gunshots, and then we all went into lockdown. At that point, nobody knew what [was] going on, and we all kind of sat in the corner. Everyone pulled out their phones and started texting their parents, and I remember the teachers started bawling, and everyone’s like, ‘wow, this is a real thing?’” Baksay said. “Everyone was texting each other, being like, ‘What the f*ck is going on?’ And it was just a lot of emotions all day. You look at the people next to you and think, ‘I really might die. This is not how I want to go.’ And then we got swatted, and just a bunch of people came out with huge guns and then escorted us out. And then that’s when we learned someone died that day.”
During the walkout, Baksay was allowed to share her story with the crowd of students who attended the walkout. She believes students and schools should take more action to teach and learn proper safety precautions.
“I think people should be aware. You think you know what to do in this situation, but you really don’t. When it happens, it’s like you really don’t want to do it. Everyone goes to the corner or hides, but I think they should take proper drills and really educate people on how to be safe,” Baksay said. “I just think there should be more action taken against drills and proper ways to actually escape, go out the window, stuff like that.”
In attendance at the walkout was Spencer Estis, freshman, who showed his support for those who have experienced and been affected by a shooting.
“I think even just going there and showing our support to the people speaking has made [the walkout] worth it,” Estis said.
During the walkout, Cadence Cox, senior, held a moment of silence for the 17 victims who passed during the 2018 Stomane Massacre. Max Zaragoza, freshman, was made aware of the dangers of gun violence from the walkout.
“We’re also students ourselves, so maybe one day we could be in a situation like that,” Zaragoza said.
On average, over 45,000 people a year are killed due to gun violence, with over 40% being due to gun homicides.
“I think a huge thing that you guys should practice is gratitude. Going from a low-income school to this, you guys have it really good. There are a lot of people who don’t have what you guys have,” Baksay said. “My [old] school is built so that homeless kids can go to school. I think people here should practice gratitude more often and maybe just help give back. Be grateful, thankful for the people around them, thankful for their parents [who] worked so hard for them. I just wish I saw more of that here.”
