Students protesting gun violence at the White House, February 19, 2018
In 2018, protests against gun violence in the United States increased after a series ofmass shootings, most notably at theMarjory Stoneman Douglas High School on February 14 that year. An organized protest in the form of a national school walkout occurred on March 14.March for Our Lives was held on March 24. Another major demonstration occurred April 20, 2018.
U.S. gun sales have risen in the 21st century, peaking in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.[1][better source needed] "NICS" is the FBI's National Instant Background Check System.
The Fort Lauderdale rally was followed by other protests across the country. On February 19, a group of teenagers staged a "lie-in" outside theWhite House.[4] Hundreds of students marched to Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on February 20.[5] Students also demonstrated at Florida's Capitol.[6] In Kansas, several hundred high school students protested on February 21.[7]
The students from Parkland, Florida began encouraging companies who partner with the NRA—offering perks or discounts to members—to sever ties with the organization. Over a dozen[8] companies dropped their NRA partnership in the days following.[9]
Students at Capistrano Valley High School in Mission Viejo, California raise their fists during the walkout, wearing orange wristbands symbolic of the movement[11]
TheEnough! National School Walkout[12] was awalkout planned by organizers of the Students' March, that occurred on March 14, in response to the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting. The protest had students, parents, andgun control students leaving schools for seventeen minutes (one minute for each person who died during the shooting) starting at 10:00 a.m. in their respective time zone.[13][14] The protest was held exactly one month after the Stoneman Douglas shooting.[15][16] TheAmerican Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) supported the student's activism.[17]
Students atIngraham High School inSeattle launch a walkout against gun violence.Total deaths in U.S. mass shootings since 1982—defined as four or more people shot and killed in one incident, excluding the perpetrator, at a public place, excluding gang-related killings.[18][19]
An estimated 3,000 schools and nearly 1 million students participated in the protest.[20][21][22][23] Thousands of students gathered in Washington, D.C., and observed 17 minutes of silence with their backs turned to theWhite House.[24]
U.S. broadcasterViacom expressed support for the protests, including executiveShari Redstone making a $500,000 donation to March For Our Lives, and all Viacom U.S. cable networks (includingMTV andNickelodeon) suspending programming for seventeen minutes at a time at 10:00 a.m. in each time zone, in solidarity for the walkouts. The company also planned discussion and acknowledgement of the movement in programming and other output by its channels.[29][30]
On Tuesday, April 10, 2018, hundreds of students walked out of their Miami high school to protest gun violence after four current or former classmates were shot off campus. The students chanted "no justice, no peace" Tuesday and carried "enough is enough" signs outsideNorthwestern Senior High School. They staged the protest after the weekend shooting deaths of 17-year-old Kimson Green, a 10th-grader who was about to become a member of theNational Honor Society, and 18-year-old Rickey Dixon, a former Northwestern student. Two other current or former classmates were wounded. The shooting happened Sunday at an apartment complex in theLiberty City neighborhood, which is plagued by gun violence.[42][43]
The National School Walkout[44] occurred nationally on April 20, 2018, which was the 19th anniversary of theColumbine High School massacre.[45] The movement was founded and organized by Lane Murdock ofRidgefield High School.[46][47][48] On the day of the walkout, student demonstrators woresafety orange and departed from over 2600 schools to push for legislative action against gun violence.[49]
^Follman, Mark; Aronsen, Gavin; Pan, Deanna (2012)."A Guide to Mass Shootings in America". MotherJones.com.Archived from the original on March 10, 2023.Updated March 27, 2023 Describes inclusion criteria.
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Media related toNational School Walkout, March 14, 2018 at Wikimedia Commons
