Students Participate in National School Walkout
On Friday, April 20, over 130 CSW students, faculty, and staff walked off campus in support of the National School Walkout for Gun Safety. The event, mirrored by more than 3,000 schools across the country was organized to maintain the momentum of national dialogue seeking stricter gun control, particularly following the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School tragedy in Parkland where 14 students and 3 faculty members were murdered. CSW community members were escorted by police as they marched two miles from school to the Weston Town Green.
On Friday, April 20, over 130 CSW students, faculty, and staff walked off campus in support of the National School Walkout for Gun Safety. The event, mirrored by more than 3,000 schools across the country was organized to maintain the momentum of national dialogue seeking stricter gun control, particularly following the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School tragedy in Parkland where 14 students and 3 faculty members were murdered. CSW community members were escorted by police as they marched two miles from school to the Weston Town Green.
“This is what democracy looks like!” students shouted as they filled the streets. “This day is about pointing fingers” explained one student who expressed frustration with politicians and their “failure to take any action to prevent gun violence and protect us.”
“This is what democracy looks like!” students shouted as they filled the streets. “This day is about pointing fingers” explained one student who expressed frustration with politicians and their “failure to take any action to prevent gun violence and protect us.”
Chanting “enough is enough," and displaying signs and banners, the group descended upon the Weston Town Green where student organizers offered a program of speeches and poetry allowing all who chose to lend their voices to the new reality, that a generation of young people are growing up in a world where mass shootings have become all too commonplace.
What came after the speeches however, was what students have long been waiting for: action. As part of the event, phone banks had been arranged offering telephone numbers to senators and Congressman representing the districts of every CSW student, both in state and nationwide.
“We have the capacity to see the world as we believe it could be,” said Rachel Sontheimer ’20. “It is our time to change the things that others have given up on.”
Student trustee Harmony Bickerton ’19 added, “We march in solidarity with over 2,000 student groups across the nation who advocate for student safety and legislative action to ensure the security of our academic institutions.”
“I never want to see news of another school shooting on the news ever again,” said Alex Sinclair ’21.
Symbolically held on the anniversary of the Columbine High School massacre (Littleton, Colorado, 1999) where 12 students and 1 teacher were gunned down by two fellow students, this year's walkout seems to have additional strength as the generation of students most victimized by events like these are now reaching adulthood. While the debate over gun control could continue on as it has for years with government inaction remaining the norm, now, at least on April 20, the feelings, voices and actions of those who cannot yet vote demanded the attention of the adults who do.
This article was originally published in the CSW Chronicle, CSW's student newspaper.
This article was originally published in the CSW Chronicle, CSW's student newspaper.
The Cambridge School of Weston is a progressive high school for day and boarding students in grades 9–12 and PG. CSW's mission is to provide a progressive education that emphasizes deep learning, meaningful relationships, and a dynamic program that inspires students to discover who they are and what their contribution is to their school, their community and the world.