It’s been four months since 17 people were killed and another 17 injured at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. Since then, some students from that school have been traveling around the country asking for stronger gun laws and registering young people to vote.
David Hogg was a senior at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School the day the shooting took place. He was not sure if there was an actual shooting or if the school was having a drill, but he began taking videos of the event with his phone and posting them on line. "If we did die in that classroom, I was hoping that our voices would carry on even if our souls would not." said Hogg, speaking at Education Writers Association’s National Seminar in Los Angeles. "And I think that's the power that video has, and that's what I was really trying to convey. I'm just trying to make sure that nobody (else) has to see their kid go through this again. We shouldn't be living in an American where we learn to accept these (school shootings) and they continue to happen." Hogg says he thinks about the people who may be killed in their schools without ever thinking about gun violence.
The administration at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School had thought about gun violence and other emergency situations. They told students to expect active shooter and other drills, which is what David and other students at the school thought was happening on February 14th. Hogg says he realized it was not a drill when he heard the helicopters buzzing the school and reading on line posts from his classmates. "We had been told throughout the year that we were going to have a drill with blanks and actors and fake blood, and that's what I thought it was. Because these (shootings) are not uncommon now and we had been talking a lot with our teachers about what to do in these types of situations."
Since the shooting, David Hogg has been one of the most vocal and active members of what is being called the “Never Again” movement. Another is Emma González, who was also a senior at the school the day of the shooting. 3 days after the shooting, González gave an 11-minute speech in front of the Broward County Courthouse at a rally in Fort Lauderdale. She says it was the school administration invited her to speak at the rally. "Somebody called me and said 'Hey, the school board wants to talk to you' and I was like "Yikes, they've been watching my interviews. They want me to stop talking. And the woman (said) 'Hey, we're having a rally tomorrow and we'd like you to speak'. “ González said she went to bed and started writing the speech the next morning. "It took about three hours. I was writing all the way up to the podium."
Both Emma and David went on to help organize the March for Our Lives Rally in Washington, DC, which was held in March. Also in March, Florida Governor Rick Scott signed the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act, a law which among other things raises the minimum age to buy rifles from 18 to 21, extend a three-day waiting period for handgun purchases to include long guns, bans bump stocks and creates a so-called guardian program enabling school employees and many teachers to carry handguns if they go through law enforcement training and their school districts agree to participate. During the signing ceremony, Scott acknowledged the students and their activism. "To the students of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, you made your voices heard. You didn't let up and you fought until there was change. You helped change our state. You made a difference. You should be proud."
The NRA has sued the state saying the age restriction violates the second and 14th amendments. For his part, David Hogg hopes the law is just the beginning. He says gun violence costs the state of Florida nearly 20 billion dollars a year. "Across American it's half a trillion. It's unbelievable that both Democrats and Republicans will refuse to acknowledge these subjects because they are too touchy when (gun violence is) costing our government money, costing lives, and letting the future of America bleed out."
After being thrust into the national spotlight, David Hogg is putting off college for a year to continue advocating for new gun laws and registering young people to vote. Emma Gonzales is also continuing to speak out. You can learn more about their movement at march for our lives dot com.
