HCC says #enough and shows support for U.S. students

By Miriam Ostermann, Associate Editor

Nearly 100 Holy Cross Collegiate (HCC) high school students participated in a walkout on March 14 to show solidarity and pay tribute to the victims who lost their lives at Florida’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School one month ago.
The Strathmore students joined thousands of individuals across the United States who walked out of class on Wednesday, pushing for tighter gun laws after 17 people were killed and no fewer than 14 people were injured at the Florida school following a mass shooting on Feb. 14.
On March 14 at 10 a.m., a majority of the HCC Grade 10 to 12 students, along with school principal Lavern Evans and approximately seven teachers, stood outside the facility for 17 minutes – one minute for each Florida student who lost their life that day.
“We just thought it would be really good for our students to support the kids in the United States in their effort to make their school safer… and just because they’re young doesn’t mean they don’t have good ideas,” said Sarah Haughey, music director with HCC.
“I think it’s good that you have a world view that you understand everybody’s lives are not easy and that some things that we take for granted, like education and being safe at school, are not a reality for some students and it’s not just in the United States.”
Although shootings at universities and schools are rare in Canada, Canadians have mourned loss of life due to school shootings over the past few decades including incidents in Saskatchewan, Quebec, Toronto, Montreal, Taber and Edmonton.
A month after the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, students and activists have called on students from around the United States to command action with efforts resulting in the National School Walkout on March 14 as well as the anticipated March for Our Lives on March 24.
Haughey heard that some school divisions in the United States banned the walkout, fearing for their students’ safety. While Haughey hoped everyone had a chance to participate in the walkout in the United States, the students stood in silence in honour of those who couldn’t themselves.