Thousands of students across the country participated in the #NationalSchoolWalkout on Friday, commemorating the 19th anniversary of the Columbine shooting and continuing the teen-led activism that has erupted in the wake of the Parkland shooting.
As was the case with the last walkout, some students walked out of schools with the full support of the adults in their lives; others continued to to face threats of disciplinary action. CNN reports that some Chicago schools are punishing protesting students by forcing them to attend school on Saturday.
If nothing else, today’s protests made one thing abundantly clear: The media might see these teen activists as something of a novelty, and critics might suspect that their dedication to gun control will fade as soon as another Tide Pods-esque trend emerges from the depths of teen trend hell, but these teens remain dedicated to this issue. With each march, the gun violence debate becomes more nuanced, touching on issues of race and the militarization of schools as much as it does regulation. This movement isn’t fading—it’s growing in complexity and addressing every facet that makes gun violence a uniquely American ill.
Here are some sights and sounds from today’s protests:
Minnesota high school students represented 50 Miles More in Milwaukee; young people involved in 50 Miles More marched 50 miles from Madison to Janesville—home House Speaker Paul Ryan— in March.
Students in D.C. participated in a 19 minute die-in to commemorate the years since Columbine:
Just some teens flipping off Trump’s hotel in D.C.: