Local reactions strong to Florida shootings

EL CENTRO — The impact of the Feb. 14 shootings in a Parkland, Fla., high school appears to be similar locally as it has been across the nation. Some have become inspired to become more active in the gun debate. Others have seemed determined to imitate the threats. Only two days after the Florida shooting, an 18-year-old student at Imperial High School threatened to kill classmates. The Imperial County District Attorney’s office charged Karl P. Manaig with three felony counts.

Earlier this week a threat made by a patient at El Centro Regional Medical Center resulted in El Centro Police Department having a heavy presence at the hospital for a couple of days. On Friday, a small group of students from Desert Oasis High School held a small demonstration in front of the Imperial County Superior Court building to voice their concerns about their safety.

One of the students, Jason Miller, said although only a few classmates took part in the demonstration, he said he hopes students will continue to come together in larger numbers in coming weeks to amplify their message. “The fact that there were 17 lives taken away in Florida, it’s something that shouldn’t happen for any reason,” Miller said. “(Locally) I’m concerned with the threats happening at the high schools in the Valley. None of this should be happening. We’re going to continue to come together no matter how many people show up. We’re going to keep going until we’re heard.”

He said two changes he would like to see include stricter gun laws and increased security presence at his school. Caira Castro also participated in Friday’s demonstration. “When I saw what happened in Florida, I felt really sad because that could’ve been us,” she said. “That could’ve been our friends and our families. For something as gruesome to take place at a place like a school, where kids are just trying to learn, makes me sad and angry.”

Across the nation

According to the Educators School Safety Network, a national organization that tracks threats at schools around the country, there have been five times more threats than on an average day following the shooting in Florida.

Both National Public Radio and the Associated Press have reported a number of credible threats that have been made across the United States just in the 10 days after the incident in Parkland. Threats similar to the one at Imperial High School have been reported in Oregon, Montana, Vermont, Maryland and other California cities, including Santa Cruz, Long Beach and Whittier.

What most of these incidents have in common is that students and faculty who became aware of the threats took action to report them.

Imperial County District Attorney Gilbert Otero, who charged the IHS student earlier this week, said that although it can be difficult to assess the credibility of some of the threats, his office doesn’t take them lightly.

“We really take every threat seriously, no matter how minute it could be. We know there are a lot of guns out there,” he said. “For every student, these threats are very real, and we are committed to taking care of them as best we can. We want to give assurance to the parents and law enforcement that we are very serious.”

He also reiterated the importance to report threats as it could be a matter of life or death.

Talks continue

Although the political tensions and gun violence debates that arise after every shooting tend to dissipate a few days after, the reaction to the shootings in Florida has proven to be more sustained, with survivors turning into advocates, seeking more action by lawmakers.

Since the shooting, students have been able to engage in a discussion on national television with members of Congress, and some met with President Donald Trump. A march is scheduled to take place at the capitol on March 24.

Students from multiple schools around the country have organized walkouts and other protests following the Feb. 14 shooting.

Desert Oasis student Miller said he hopes more students make themselves heard. “Students are standing up for what they believe in, and we are coming together and trying to make a change for our safety,” he said. “We have little brothers and sisters and family members who are in school and shouldn’t have to worry about whether anyone is going to show up with a gun.”