First and foremost, we, the 112th Masthead of The Choate News, express our disappointment over the lack of gun restrictions in the U.S. and frustration with pro-gun representatives. We also declare our support for the recent demonstrations against gun violence in the local community and in the nation at large.
We commend the School’s recent efforts in condemning gun violence: namely, the School’s participation in the Eight Schools Association’s statement (which read, in part, “We join with those voices demanding meaningful action to keep our students safe from gun violence on campuses and beyond.”) and students’ involvement in the March for Our Lives Rally.
However, we urge the School to take more action in organizing outlets for students to protest gun-violence, especially amid the seemingly endless national epidemic of school shootings.
In 1999, the Columbine High School Massacre — frequently cited as the beginning of a continuous thread of school shootings — claimed 13 lives. In 2007, a college student killed 32 people at Virginia Tech. Close to our own community, in 2012, a Newtown resident killed 20 young children and 6 teachers at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
Most recently, the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, took the lives of fourteen students and three staff members.
However, these are only a handful of school shootings that the nation has suffered in the past few decades. The Parkland Shooting is 1 of 17 incidents of gunfire at schools in 2018 alone. According to The Washington Post, since 1999, more than 187000 students attending at least 193 primary or secondary schools have experienced a shooting on campus during school hours. Moreover, these statistics say nothing of the innumerable cases of gun violence that take place off campus, in our homes, our workplaces, our alleyways, our movie theaters and concert venues.
The students of our country — whether in Parkland or Newtown — must not fear that an institution designed to provide the mind with knowledge will fail to provide the body with protection.
The massacre in Parkland seems to have rallied support in condemning gun violence. Here in Wallingford, as in New York, Denver, Washington D.C., and other communities across the U.S., many students at public high schools participated in organized demonstrations.
We, the 112th Masthead of the Choate News, stand in solidarity with these voices that condemn gun violence. But while other institutions have organized passionate and meaningful protests, we feel that the School could be making a bigger effort in addressing this issue. We cannot pride ourselves in being the best nation on earth but fail to act when lives are lost at the flash of a gun’s muzzle.
We encourage both the administration and student-led groups to take initiative and bring about change. Members of our community could take action, whether it be organizing protests or urging pro-gun representatives to deny funding from the NRA and focus instead on protecting students. Enough is enough; the Choate community should do everything in its power to make a difference.
As a masthead, we aimed to incorporate several pieces related to gun-violence into our first issue. Whether it be a Campus News article detailing the March for Our Lives Rally or a Features article discussing Choate’s emergency plan in the event of a school shooting, we hope to raise awareness regarding an issue in desperate need of universal attention.
