More than 400 students at Norman High School walked out of class to protest gun violence on Wednesday morning, joining thousands of young protesters from across the country, one month after a mass shooting at a high school in Parkland, Florida.
Norman High students observed a moment of silence on the football field behind the school, before lying down on the field to symbolize the students who died in mass shootings.
Students chanted slogans like “Gun control is self control.” Some carried signs with messages like “Fear has no place in our schools” and “We are students, we are here, we are change.”
School officials allowed the students to protest only on the football field. Senior Daniel Alguindigue felt the administration was too restrictive.
“It was conveniently the worst place to show our message. It was only 17 minutes long and it was it on the football field where no one could see us. We need legislators to see us. We need voters to see us. We are not there for a pep assembly on the football field. We are protesting,” he told KGOU.
After the gathering on the football field, Alguindigue and about 100 other students refused to go back to class, crossing Main Street to demonstrate across from the school.
The school approved walkout is over. Students are moving across the street, despite being asked to go back to class. pic.twitter.com/T0coHMJvLV
— Storme Jones (@StormeJones) March 14, 2018
Cars are honking and drivers waving as they pass by pic.twitter.com/ikvHku9fyb
— Storme Jones (@StormeJones) March 14, 2018
School officials say students will be counted absent for the time they took to protest outside of school grounds.
Senior Bryan Maxey said expressing his beliefs was more important than being counted absent at school. He carried a sign reading “I can’t stop school shootings if I’m shot dead.”
“I just really felt that this was an important issue that I needed to address. They are counting us absent, but I figured this was just a tad bit more important to come out here and protest with all these other students who are doing what they believe,” Maxey said.
The activists behind the Women’s March, one of the largest demonstrations in U.S. history, helped organize Wednesday’s walkout, providing resources for students, teachers and administrators on its website.
A further nationwide protest, called the March for Our Lives, is planned for March 24. The event’s website lists demonstrations in Oklahoma City, Stillwater and Tulsa on that date.
As a community-supported news organization, KGOU relies on contributions from readers and listeners to fulfill its mission of public service to Oklahoma and beyond. Donate online, or by contacting our Membership department.