Hundreds of Rosemont students organize ‘Die-In’ as part of the National School Walkout
Hundreds of students at Rosemont Middle School joined the National School Walkout Wednesday by organizing a “Die-In” demonstration, during which about 200 students lay down on the ground as if they were dead to show their concerns over school safety and easy access to high-capacity weapons in the United States.
Looking on were an equal number of students who watched as the demonstrators, clad in orange, held handmade signs with remarks such as “no more silence, end gun violence,” “one child > guns” and “one child is worth more than all the guns on earth.”
Empower, the youth activism arm of the Women’s March, provided guidance for campus walkouts across the country, including the recommendation to wear orange, a color hunters with guns wear to protect themselves from one another.
Lisa Avery, English department chair at Rosemont, facilitated student leadership behind the demonstration. She said the effort happened “very organically” about a week after the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Fla.
“After the Parkland shooting, a number of students who were concerned started coming together and went to administration and teachers saying they wanted to do something about it,” Avery said.
Roan Thibault, a 13-year-old eighth-grader at Rosemont, was one of the primary organizers of the student-led demonstration. He said he was motivated primarily by the lack of meaningful action from legislators.
“I’ve just been very angry about this whole gun violence issue,” he said. “I feel like everyone’s just gotten complacent and I’m not really happy about that.”
During the demonstration, which occurred during the 20 minutes of snack time designated between second and third period, a few Rosemont students read the names and stories of those who were killed during the Parkland shooting, such as Carmen Schentrup, Luke Hoyer and Peter Wang.
Thibault stood by other students who, through a public address system, read from their handwritten notes torn from a college-ruled notebook.
“These kids were not that much older than us, some being the same age — they were no different. They went to school, hung out with friends, laughed, loved and cried,” one student said.
“One thing they didn’t do was worry about dangerous people with dangerous weapons trying to harm them and not knowing if they would be able to go back home. Enough is enough,” the student added.
Lucy Rickey, another 13-year-old eighth-grader at Rosemont and demonstration organizer, said that hundreds of orange buttons showing support for the Die-In were handed out.
While humbled by the support, she added that organizers don’t plan on stopping and will continue with an event on April 20 to correspond with other walkout events.
“There’s not enough action with our government, and you can’t wait for other people to do what needs to be changed,” Rickey said.
Twitter: @JeffLanda
