Colleges Make Statements About Gun Control Protest
In the wake of the recent school shooting in Parkland, Florida, students are organizing, using protests and classroom walkouts to push for gun control reform in America.
To cite just one example, Bethany Rodgers reported that "hundreds" of kids at Montgomery Blair High in Silver Springs, MD, staged a walkout on February 21. "The students are on the way to Metro, and from there into D.C. for a rally at the Capitol," she wrote on Twitter.
Hundreds of Blair High students march down Colesville Road for walkout to protest gun violence pic.twitter.com/IaAoRZwUul
- Bethany Rodgers (@BethRodgersBB) February 21, 2018
Thousands of teens protested in Florida, and similar events have taken place in Phoenix, Minneapolis, Colorado, Illinois, reports CNN.
In a show of support for the advocacy of these young people, a growing number of universities have issued statements saying that participation in events such as these will not negatively impact an applicant's chances of getting into college. Neither will any disciplinary action such as a suspension or detention that stems from these acts of civil disobedience.
"It is time for courage and time for compromise. And it is time for real conversation in which every idea and every person is taken seriously. We stand with you as you seek the truth and endeavor to make this a more perfect union," Nathan O. Hatch, president of Wake Forest University, wrote. "Wake Forest University joins dozens of colleges and universities in assuring all those applicants who choose to participate in peaceful protest in response to the tragic events that transpired in Parkland, Florida."
Similarly, Hannah Mendlowitz, the senior assistant director of admissions at Yale, wrote a post on the university's admissions blog about questions her department had been receiving.
"In the week since the tragic mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, something incredible has begun to happen. High school students in Parkland and beyond are stepping up in a refusal to allow the issue of gun control fade from the public eye. Over the past few days, we continue to get the question: will Yale look unfavorably upon discipline resulting from peaceful demonstrations? The answer is simple: Of course not."
Over 80 colleges in total have acknowledged the movement. See the growing list right here.
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