(Caption: Senior Krissie Ruiz is overcome with emotion during her speech about the victims of Columbine and other mass shootings, while fellow protestors offer her comfort.)
Nearly 300 Holmes students walked out of class April 20th to join the National Walkout against gun violence. Students linked arms quietly as they walked down the halls and corridors at precisely 10 am.
Students gathered around the flagpole in the front of the school. Due to a limited amount of space, the overflow of students made their way to the drop off area, forming a large circle. Administration guarded closely, making sure the protest remained safe.
The protest started with senior Ric Galvan giving rules regarding behavior and expectations. Shortly after, Galvan gave a speech that included facts about recent mass shootings. Galvan went into depth, bringing up examples including the names of the schools affected and the number of people who lost their lives. Along with schools, he mentioned other major incidents, including the Pulse nightclub shooting, located in Orlando, Florida and the Las Vegas mass shooting that took place October 1st, 2017.
“Just because sixty-four people lost their lives does not mean that the other people who lost less are of any less importance,” Galvan said during his six-minute speech.
Galvan’s speech eventually went into detail on how students lives are affected by mass shootings.
“None of us has lived one year without seeing a mass shooting. Not one,” Galvan said, emphasizing how it is unacceptable that students have to witness such events.
Galvan ended his speech by making a demand that the government make a modification to the gun laws and restrictions that are in place today. Galvan closed his speech by making an ultimatum that students get their voices heard and to vote once they are of the voting age.
“The first step of making progress on this issue is getting our voices heard, through these demonstrations,” Galvan said as one of his closing statements.
Shortly after Galvan presented his speech, the students gave their applause, and junior Paige Borenheim stepped up to give hers. Her speech began with statements about fear that students deal with in association with mass shootings.
“As students who attend public school, we should not be afraid to walk into our own classrooms. We should be walking through our hallways in peace, not in fear,” Borenheim said.
As she continued her speech, she brought up examples which the crowd gathered responded to tranquilly.
“When we leave our homes in the mornings, we should not have to fear the possibility of not coming home. When we send our younger siblings to school, we should not have to fear for their safety,” Borenheim said.
Borenheim additionally brought up factors to support her claim that the government needs to allow some changes to the 2nd amendment.
“The government understands people’s minds are not developed enough to drink alcohol at 18 but doesn’t mind 18-year-olds buying weapons designed to kill,” Borenheim said.
Borenheim ended her speech which was followed by applause.
Soon after, Jonathan Valdez stepped up and spoke out from the heart without a planned speech. Though his speech was short, much of the students agreed with his views and cheered him on.
Halfway through the protest, junior Alexander Flores, joining the group of protestors, shared his message in defense of the 2nd amendment. Holding a sign with a picture of and AR-15 Rifle and the words “Come and take it”, he made his way to the middle of the circle and spoke out.
Flores spoke out about how guns are needed, and how it’s not the government’s fault, but the fault of a failed medical system. Flores believes that owning guns can help protect lives, rather than destroying them.
“Banning guns is not a solution. Without protection, a man will come in and shoot up the place because he knows he will not be shot at,” Flores said.
The audience of students began to interrogate Flores with questions from students whose beliefs on guns were different. As the tension mounted, Galvan instructed students to remain quiet and to respect Flores’s beliefs, even though they were different from the majority of students involved in the protest.
Flores’s speech was followed by many other speeches by students, including Angela Calderon, AJ Hill and Krissie Ruiz. Ruiz gave a very emotional, tearful speech about Columbine and the many students who lost their lives in that shooting. Students, including Galvan and Jonathan Valdez, supported Ruiz by linking arms.
Many of the students gathered believed that by supporting the walkout, a difference could be made in the government.
“If we don’t speak out now, nothing will be done. We have to be the generation to start something and to stop the stereotype that ‘teens just cause chaos.’ If you ask me, we are the generation to notice how flawed the system is and we are finally not afraid to speak out about it,” sophomore Yvette Diaz said.
At 10:39, many students left for their third-period class as encouraged by Galvan himself. While many students left, about half the students stayed and continued speaking out against gun violence, the whole time being observed by administration as they monitored for safety. By the end of fourth-period, the group of students were back to class.