PARKLAND SHOOTING PROTEST

On February, 14, was the anniversary of the Parkland, Florida shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. There were 17 lives lost in that shooting alone. That’s not okay. Students go to school to get an education, and they dream to grow up, get a job, and have a successful life. Students should not be feared of their lives every day getting out of bed, getting dressed, and going to school. They should be focusing on their studies, not trying to stay alive. Tomorrow when I go to school, should I be fearing for my life? No.

That’s why we organized a protest. We wanted to remember those 17 lives that were lost. They matter to us, and they should matter to you. Those student went to school that Valentines day, but didn’t come home. The protest was at 3:30pm in Harvard Square in Cambridge, MA. We emailed the Boston Globe newspaper and informed them about our protest. They actually came! They took photos and interviewed us. We spent a very long time making bandanas that said #NeverAgain at the top, a red cross on top of a gun, and on the bottom, “17 Lives Lost”. We handed these bandanas out in Harvard Square at our protest. It was a moving experience. There was a crowd of people listening to our opinion.

​ We stood in a line silent. Then, one at a time, Hermela, me, and our friend Mahelet Asnake stood up front of the silent line spoke our opinion. The people listening cared about what we said some people tried to donate money. Most shook our hands and told us what we were doing was incredibly brave. Which in my opinion was true. 6 sixth graders explaining their opinion in front of a lot of people. That takes guts. Our protest was recognized by the Boston Globe. That was a big deal to us. If you agree with what we did contact us! We are happy to hear your opinions on gun violence in the United States. Thank you for reading. We hope you care about gun violence as much as we do.