STUDENTS AT THE PACKER COLLEGIATE INSTITUTE ORGANIZE DEMONSTRATION AS PART OF THE
#ENOUGH NATIONAL SCHOOL WALKOUT FOR GUN VIOLENCE PREVENTION
In response to our elected officials’ failure to address gun violence, Women’s March EMPOWER joined student activists to organize a National Student Walkout. We, the students of The Packer Collegiate Institute have organized a local walkout in solidarity with this initiative to call for comprehensive gun violence prevention legislation.
March 2, 2018 (Brooklyn, New York) -- March 14, 2018 will mark one month since the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, which left 14 students and 3 staff members killed and many others wounded or injured. Women’s March Youth EMPOWER is calling for students, teachers, school administrators, parents and allies to take part in a #NationalSchoolWalkout for 17 minutes (in honor of the 17 lives taken in the tragedy in Parkland) at 10am across every time zone on March 14, 2018 to protest Congress’ inaction to do more than tweet thoughts and prayers in response to the gun violence plaguing our schools and neighborhoods.
We, the students of The Packer Collegiate Institute, have decided that this moment is too crucial and this issue too urgent to stand idly by. On March 14th we will, along with students at other Brooklyn Schools, walk to Columbus Park at Borough Hall and protest. Additionally, students will be granted the opportunity to speak out and share their thoughts on how we are affected by gun violence and what we can do to change government policies.
We are walking out for ALL people who have experienced gun violence, including systemic forms of gun violence that disproportionately impact teens in Black and Brown communities. It is important that when we refer to gun violence, we do not overlook the impact of police brutality and militarized policing, or see police in schools as a solution. We also recognize the United States has exported gun violence through imperialist foreign policy to destabilize other nations.
We raise our voices for action against all these forms of gun violence. We students and our allies are organizing the school walkout to demand Congress pass legislation to protect us. We are not safe at our own schools. We are not safe in our own cities and towns. We need action, in fact, we demand action. It is our elected officials’ jobs to keep us safe and pass federal gun reform legislation that will address the public crisis of gun violence. We want Congress to pay attention and take note: many of us will vote this November and many others will cast their ballots in 2020.
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WHO: The students of Packer Collegiate Institute, Brooklyn Friends, Saint Ann's, Brooklyn Tech, and other Brooklyn schools
WHAT: #ENOUGH School Walkout
WHERE: 209 Joralemon Street
Brooklyn, NY 11201
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AKA: Columbus Park (Borough Hall)
WHEN: March 14th, 2018 at 10am
BACKGROUND: On the afternoon of February 14, 2018, a mass shooting occurred at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. Seventeen people were killed, making it one of the world's deadliest school massacres. Women’s March Youth EMPOWER was founded after the 2016 election to encourage youth to organize around issues in our communities and build collective power. Women’s March Youth EMPOWER called for students, teachers, school administrators, parents and allies to take part in a #NationalSchoolWalkout at 10am across every time zone on March 14, 2018. Over 1,965 demonstrations have been registered with 175,000 students, staff, and parents have participated.