As the tragedy in Uvalde, Texas, sends reverberations across the country, American students are calling for action.
Students in the D.C. area and across the country staged school walkouts on Thursday.
At McLean High School in McLean, Virginia, more than 100 students walked out of school at midday to have their voices heard.
“Are we next? Are we next?” they chanted. “How many more?” was another refrain.
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Student Bennett Brunner was an organizer of the demonstration and said he and other students were inspired by a teacher. The students want to promote social change as best they know how, Brunner said.
“I think the lesson isn’t for us — it’s for our legislators as midterms approach. Change is coming, and they really need to include new platforms as mass shootings have been rampant across 2021 and 2022,” he said.
Students at Meridian High School in Falls Church, Virginia, also held a walkout.
“We worried, we’re scared and we want change,” a student said.
Most of the students aren’t yet old enough to vote. But they’ll still make an impact, Brunner said.
“In a few years, certainly we will, and our parents have certainly taken notice,’ he said.
A March for Our Lives demonstration is planned in D.C. on Saturday, June 11.
