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Glenwood Springs High School students lead walk-out in solidarity with Florida victims

Glenwood Springs High School freshman Johnathan Webster, center, leads his classmates in a chant during the walk-out and staged demonstration on Wednesday in support of the Parkland, Florida, shooting victims and against the NRA.
Chelsea Self / Post Independent
PHOTO GALLERY See more photos from the walkout here.

Dozens of Glenwood Springs High School students walked out and staged a demonstration at noon on Wednesday in support of Parkland, Florida, shooting victims and against the NRA.

Students lined Grand Avenue in front of the high school. Some carried signs with slogans such as “Enough is enough,” and “Tell your parents: DON’T vote for people who accept $$ from the NRA.” They participated in chants such as “School zone not gun zone.”

The demonstration was spurred by the school shooting in Parkland, Florida, on Feb. 14 that resulted in 17 deaths of students and faculty members.

Freshman student Johnathan Webster helped organize the demonstration.

“The amount of school shootings in the past two months is insane,” Webster said. “Students are the ones being targeted, not Congress. So students are the ones that have to make the change.”

Fellow student Anthony Rodriguez, 17, joined the protest with a sign displaying how much funding 3rd District Congressman Scott Tipton receives from the NRA.

He said he’s “sick and tired of all the school shootings,” and the uncertainty of whether another shooting will happen at Glenwood High School or another school in the state.

“What really bothers me is not a lot is being done to stop it,” Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez added that he and his fellow classmates are coming of age and will be able to vote in the next election, making them a powerful voice in elections.

When student and ROTC member Thaleia Castillo, 16, was asked why she joined the demonstration, she said, “a lot of kids died” and students shouldn’t be afraid to go to school.

“It’s very important to have some gun control and take some action,” Castillo said.

Roaring Fork Schools Superintendent Rob Stein supported the students’ right to protest within reason.

“I am inspired by the student leadership we’re seeing in Florida and throughout the country and hopeful that adults will truly listen to the rallying cry of our youth,” Stein said in a statement. “At the same time, I hope our students will continue to balance their school responsibilities with their activism.”


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