In Henrico County, over 1,000 students streamed out of Hermitage High School Friday afternoon, joining a nationwide walkout demonstration protesting gun violence in schools.
The students walked out during their study period to bring attention to the prevalence of school shootings in America. A number of student speakers took time to share their message in the stadium, speaking against deadly gun violence and calling for policies to strengthen gun safety in schools. Students returned to class by the start of their third period.
“Although the school division does not assist with the organization of events such as this, our staff does take steps to monitor students to ensure they remain safe at all times. While we always want students to remain in class, we acknowledge their right to speak up for their beliefs and appreciate the peaceful and respectful manner in which they did so,” Hermitage High School principal Michael Jackson said in a statement.
The event, created by the advocacy group Students Demand Action, spurred walkouts in schools across the country. A map on the group’s website showed students in 27 schools in the commonwealth registered to officially participate in the protest, spanning Northern Virginia, the Richmond region and Hampton Roads. One school in Blacksburg was slated to have students participate.
Current students have been called the “school shooting generation,” according to Students Demand Action. Many schools across the nation have only been back in session for a couple weeks but there’s already been a mass shooting at a catholic school in Minneapolis, which claimed the lives of two children and injured dozens more in late August.
In 2023, Virginia was rocked by a deadly shooting at Huguenot High School’s graduation ceremony in downtown Richmond, where 18-year-old graduate Shawn Jackson and his father were killed and several were wounded. Lawmakers and civil rights groups have since called for more resources to prevent gun violence in Virginia schools.
Students Demand Action advocates against policies they feel would lead to dangerous access to guns. They also push for more gun safety laws and protocols passed in state legislatures.
This article originally appeared in the Virginia Mercury. To read it there, go here.
