They’re mad as hell and they’re not gonna take it anymore. They’re Generation Z, or as some call them “the future voters of America.” They want gun control NOW and they are putting politicians on notice that they will pay politically unless they fix America’s gun problem YESTERDAY!
Current Events
Nobody expected today’s Generation Z to supersede the know-it-all Millennials and actually give a damn about the world around them, but that’s exactly what has happened. These teens are tired of mass shootings, they are tired of burying their friends and siblings, and, unlike recent generations before them, they are ready to put their money where their mouths are and actually do something about it.
Last Friday, 60 students at South Broward High School walked out of classrooms in protest to demand an end to gun violence. They raised placards that read “It Could Have Been Us,” “Prayers and Condolences Are Not Enough,” and “Your Silence Is Killing Us.”
On Monday, a group of teens calling themselves Teens for Gun Reform joined with more than a hundred supporters and staged a “lie-in” outside the White House in order to pressure lawmakers to pass tougher gun laws. The teens called for 17 demonstrators to lie down for 3 minutes to symbolize how long it took Nikolas Cruz to gun down 17 students and teachers during last weeks Valentine’s Day massacre in Florida.
Additionally, several survivors of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting have started to speak out about the murder of their friends and classmates. They’ve taken to social media to admonish lawmakers for valuing guns over the lives of America’s youth and they’ve begun to mobilize for action.
According to student Cameron Kasky, “We are losing our lives, while the adults are playing around. You’re either with us or against us.”
His no-nonsense words were in response to Donald Trump and various GOP congressmen, who have attempted (but failed) to successfully push the narrative that mass shootings are not about guns, but about mental health.
“We are children; you guys are the adults,” David Hogg added. “You need to take some action and play a role. If you can’t get elected without taking money from child murderers, why are you running?”
However, it was Emma Gonzalez who vowed: “We will be the last mass shooting.”
Make no mistake, these teens of Generation Z are saying what they mean and meaning what they say!
“They say that criminals get guns no matter what laws you have in place. That might be true, but we don’t have to encourage them to get those guns. We can make it harder … and we can prevent some seriously nasty crimes and some seriously indescribable tragedies from occurring. And if somebody doesn’t want to do that at this point, that’s pathetic.” – Emma Gonzalez
Current Events
They’re calling it MARCH FOR OUR LIVES. On March 24th, students from across the country will converge on Washington to demand that lawmakers not waste another day without tackling the issues of school safety and gun control reform.
“I know that the word has spread wide and far but I hope that we can even spread it even farther by that point because I know that that’s going to be indescribable, but in such a positive way,” Gonzalez said.
Already, tens of thousands of teens and their parents are pledging to travel to Washington and deliver a stark message of GUN CONTROL NOW to Republican lawmakers and their puppet-masters, the NRA. For them, it is literally a matter of life and death.
So, what exactly is behind this powerful activism gene emanating from Generation Z?
“School shootings and mass shootings, in general, have been a part of their lives since they were born, unfortunately,” said Greg Shufeldt, assistant professor of political science at Butler University. “When tragedy strikes their community, the young survivors are ready to take action, and their reaction is not to grieve silently, for the most part, but to take action and to try and enact change — something no one has been able to do.”
Members of Generation Z are using tools they are familiar with by initiating conversations and campaigns on Facebook and Twitter to call out politicians and demand immediate change. Although tragedies frequently spur people to activism, this time feels different.
“What makes this incredibly unique and powerful is that it is originating with the students,” Shufeldt said.
Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida agreed, saying he believes the powerful chorus of youth could be a tipping point in the gun violence debate.
“The fact that they are speaking up as boldly as they are, maybe that’s the turning point. You haven’t heard students speak up one after another after another after witnessing such carnage and speaking out with such conviction.”
Will Generation Z change Washington and defeat the powerful NRA? Stay tuned…
I was hiding in a closet for 2 hours. It was about guns. You weren’t there, you don’t know how it felt. Guns give these disgusting people the ability to kill other human beings. This IS about guns and this is about all the people who had their life abruptly ended because of guns. https://t.co/XnzhvuN1zd
— carly (@car_nove) February 15, 2018
17 people are dead. 17 of my classmates. This is how you fucking respond? How much of a heartless dick do you have to be to tweet something like this. And btw as we were running for our lives we were calling 911 to the point that they told us not to anymore. https://t.co/MQWae1mGwv
— sarah // #NEVERAGAIN (@sarahchad_) February 14, 2018
I hope ever member of Congress saw this interview
Melissa Falkowski, teacher at Marjory Stoneman Douglas explains how well prepared they were and how many times they drilled for this and still there was nothing they can do
She breaks down when she begs Congress to do something pic.twitter.com/J6y9MK8b0V
— Andrew Lawrence (@ndrew_lawrence) February 15, 2018
.
Good back to back story about the gun situation DJ. You are spot on about this generation getting involved. They seem like they could actually make a difference and get some changes made. After all they will be the ones voting in a few years. I can’t wait to see how the march they are planning goes. I wish them all success.