Burlington High School students walked out of class in the driving snow Wednesday, joining tens of thousands of students nationwide demonstrating in favor of increased gun control measures. For BHS senior Allie Brown, who organized the event, the demonstration was just the first step for students to make their voices heard.
“It’s so easy to get involved,” Brown announced from a podium, as other students held up posters with contact information for state legislators. “Take a picture of these posters right now, make a call, and then you can keep going about your day.”
The demonstration came one month to the day after 17 staff and students were killed in a Valentine’s Day shooting in Parkland, Fla. Since then, Vermont has seen 10 threats reported at schools around the state, according to school safety liaison officer Rob Evans.
Vermont has also seen a rise in student activism on the issue of gun control.
At 10 a.m., the first of several hundred BHS students started pouring outside, where they huddled in front of the main school entrance as snow fell. The 17-minute protest was intended to honor the victims of the Parkland shooting — one minute for each person killed.
Students held a moment of silence; some attendees pinned orange ribbons to their jackets in solidarity.
Several speakers praised the effort and urged students to continue speaking out.
Sharon Panitch, a member of the gun control advocacy group Gun Sense Vermont, told students never to underestimate the power of youth activism. “People are asking, why now?” Panitch said, listing off a host of school shootings that haven’t triggered as much public outcry. “The difference is you,” she said. “You’re speaking your truth and we adults had damn well better listen.”
Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger sent out a statement in support of the students, though he didn’t make an appearance at the event.
“I applaud the leadership and activism of the students at Burlington High School, and elsewhere in Vermont, who have thoughtfully participated in National School Walkout Day and made their voices heard in Montpelier,” the statement read. “Already, through their forceful arguments, these students have accomplished more in a few short weeks to move Vermont towards safer gun policies than has been achieved in decades.”
As students and press gathered around the podium in front of the school, sophomore Silas Brown (no relation to Allie) asked students to continue the movement, and not just at the local and state level. He told his peers to call Vermont’s congressional delegation and encourage them to advocate strongly in Washington, D.C., for increased gun control. “Let today be a call to action and not just a day of remembrance,” he said.
For his part, Brown told Seven Days later that he would attend another student-led protest, the March for Our Lives rally, in Montpelier on March 24. Until then, he said he’d work to build momentum through interactions at school.
“We want to keep having these conversations,” Brown said.
Before the protest, Burlington school district spokesperson Russ Elek only reluctantly agreed to allow media onto school property, after calls to Superintendent Yaw Obeng. “We want to keep students safe,” Elek said, urging press to stand back.
Several other protests were scheduled at high schools around the state, though many of those schools were closed for snow days. Some rescheduled walkouts for Thursday.
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Where is the outcry for the 800 beating hearts killed each day, who speaks for them, Where is the outcry for the half a million killed each year to alcohol related deaths. Guns are the least of the problem, we are all being played by our elected officials and we are to damn dumb to realize it! They give us just enough to keep us fat dumb and happy and we fall right into place.
Guns have been around for a damn long time, the issue is parents are not allowed to parent anymore and kids do as they please. Kids deciding their gender at 8 years old or younger, give me a freakin break!! There is no respect at any level anymore, there is no leadership in government at all! It truly is a very sad state of affairs.
If this country is ever attacked we are screwed, the cupcakes of today will say lets talk this out while losing every right they don’t realize they have and are giving up.
There is a movie that I think came out in the 80’s called Idiocracy, check it out because we are there!!!!
Really think these “students” should read the US Constitution and the Vermont Constitution before they do any protesting. I can bet that some of the teachers haven’t even read the Constitutions..There’s nothing wrong about protesting, just if you do at least read up about what the cause is really about.
These kids are just that kids they have no real world experience and therefore have no original ideas of their own. They are being led by a bunch of left leaning adults that have no real solutions to the violence that is killing the children they are trying to protect. Taking away all the guns will not stop the violence, mentality ill people will find a way to inflict harm one way or the other. I hear lots of people oppose arming teachers and staff at schools but I never hear these people that oppose the idea suggest an alternative to protecting my kid from the crazies that are out in the world. We will never know if hardening our schools will make them safer unless we try but one thing is for sure doing nothing will never work as proven by the 218 school shooting that have occurred since Columbine. Kids being politically active is great but try to understand politics first so you are not used a political pawns. Read the constitution and understand what rights are and how the process works. And when you are old enough buy a gun to protect yourself and your loved ones. God bless America.
Most school shooters are angry students themselves. Don’t blame the guns young people. Police yourselves. As for walking out of class, most would do it for a McDonald’s cheeseburger if given the chance.
Students are advised not to judge ALL Muslims by the actions of a few lunatics, but are encouraged to judge ALL Gun Owners by the actions of a few lunatics. God bless those that influence young minds.
It’s sad that we ceded intelligent legislation to children fighting to stop being forced to live in terror for their lives while at school.
America has degenerated into a laughingstock because nobody can believe we do nothing while children are routinely slaughtered in class. If you put gun rights over children’s rights, you are the enemy of all that is decent and good in the world. These children are all heroes, and it is shameful that we made it necessary for them to be.
At Town Meeting, Charlotte passed resolution asking legislators to ban assault rifles. It seems like news to me, but local media aren’t interested
Hoping this spirit can be continued into the Congressional midterm campaign season. We will only see the improvements we need with regard to real/effective gun control and the many other issues this bought and paid for U.S. Congress refuse to address or are complicit in.
This engagement of our youth gives me hope that with them in the lead, we can turn around the terrible state of affairs plaguing the U.S.
Keep faith and don’t “listen to your elders”! Go get ’em students!
Middlebury also had a big gun safety demonstration today even though local schools were closed. Very encouraging.
Go kids, go!!!
Now if you only got this excited about Climate Change as that is going to be the Earth you inherit. And you will all live long enough to see the worst of it.
Stay active . . stay involved.