Overreactions to Kids Taking Action
Since Valentine’s Day of 2018, kids from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and schools across the country have taken action to stop gun violence in schools. By organizing marches, school walkouts, and calls to congressmen, students have stretched themselves to their limit to try to ensure safety for themselves, their peers, families, and future children. Unfortunately, some adults with social platforms have mocked, made fun of, or flat out defamed victims of the Parkland shooting who have advocated for stricter gun control in schools.
These kids are hard to hit. They’re using their newly found voices to speak out against NRA and sedentary politicians. Because they’re teenagers, if adults try to take them down, they’re publicly shamed for hurting young kids. So these teenagers have used their power to organize marches and rallies and scare politicians looking for reelection into supporting gun control laws.
Emma Gonzalez, a survivor of the shooting, did a photoshoot and interview for Teen Vogue with some of her classmates about why schools need gun control. In one of the pictures for this issue, she tore up a poster of a gun target, the kind that is often seen in shooting ranges. Someone online photoshopped this image to depict Gonzalez tearing the Constitution. This doctored picture has been used as ammunition for the arguments of those opposed to gun control, claiming that stricter gun laws would violate the second amendment.
David Hogg, another student from Parkland, recently stated that he was denied from four schools in California: UCLA, UCSD, UCSB and UC Irvine. Holding a 4.2 GPA and a 1270 on the SAT, Hogg said that he was “not angry.”
“At this point, I’m probably going to take a gap year and I’m sure I’ll eventually find the right place for me,” stated Hogg. “Right now I’m more focused on changing the world and the future of America.”
On the morning of Wednesday, March 28, Laura Ingraham - host of The Ingraham Angle on Fox - took to Twitter, writing: “David Hogg Rejected by Four Colleges To Which He Applied and whines about it.” Hogg responded with his own tweet to his 600,000 plus followers, demanding that Ingraham’s sponsors drop her show. On Thursday, Ingraham tweeted an apology, stating that “any student should be proud of a 4.2 GPA,” and “On reflection, in the spirit of Holy Week, I apologize for any upset or hurt my tweet caused him or any of the brave victims of Parkland.”
Ingraham only apologized to Hogg after her show was dropped by five of her top 20 sponsors: Bayer, Hulu, Johnson & Johnson, Liberty Mutual, and Wayfair. At the end of the week, on Friday, she announced that she was taking a vacation.
In Parkland, where the shooting occurred, the administration of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School has implemented a policy that requires students to carry clear backpacks, exposing students’ possessions in order to prevent weapons being carried onto campus. The drawback to this approach is that students believe that it’s a violation of their privacy. Some have written notes about this on sheets of paper and placed them in their backpack so other students and teachers can read their opinions. Even though the administration at Marjory Stoneman Douglas had good intentions, they overreacted and implemented a policy that infuriates and makes students more fearful than they already are. Students also attached large orange price tags with the label $1.05, and one student, @xo_karmin_ox on twitter, wrote the note: “This backpack is probably worth more than my life. #neveragain.”
From all around the country people have taken sides with or against the Parkland kids. Some people with influential voices, such as Laura Ingraham, have denounced Parkland victims for exploiting their newfound “fame” to get into college or otherwise. Citizens of the internet photoshopped some of the victims, effectively defaming them. Even the teachers and administrators at Marjory Stoneman Douglas, though they had good intentions, further outraged their students by violating their privacy and refusing to take real preventative measures to prevent gun violence in schools. There have been overreactions and over corrections from every part of the country. Why do these adults have to tear down and try to silence these kids’ voices when their goal is to make schools safer and keep their peers alive? Why can’t we all take action on something we can all agree to be a problem: gun violence in schools across America?
By Caroline Parrish