‘We shouldn’t be fearful to come to school’
La Cueva students rally to demand stricter gun controls
Hundreds of La Cueva High School students gathered outside their school Wednesday for a noon-hour rally to commemorate the victims of last week’s school shooting in Florida, and demanded that state legislators in New Mexico pass stricter gun control laws.
The students set aloft dozens of balloons to commemorate all victims of school shootings across the country.
Fifteen-year-old sophomore Lauren Brown, an organizer of the rally, acknowledged that “we as teenagers can’t exactly make the laws around here but we do have the voices that can impact them.”
She called for more rigorous background checks involving more than “five minutes of
paperwork,” she said.
“If someone is registering for something that is designed to kill, that’s not enough. We need to know that they’re not dangerous. What’s their mental health history, their juvenile record, have they threatened like the Florida shooter or the person last night at Rio Rancho who threatened to shoot up the school? Those people are dangerous. … We have a voice as students to plead to the Legislature for change. Our lives could be on the line, so I think that’s worth a background check.”
Sophomore Diego Sanchez, 16, said he and his fellow students “want change, for sure, including gun control laws to prevent weapons like AR15s from getting out in the public.”
“We shouldn’t be fearful to come to school,” said 16-year-old sophomore Aaliyah Romero. “This should be a loving environment. I don’t think anybody needs a gun to make a statement. If you want to say something, find a different way.”
Elena Martinez, 18, a senior, said she felt it was important to participate in the rally “to get the message out that violence in schools is not OK and every student’s life matters.” Students, she said, shouldn’t be coming to school afraid for their lives.
Junior Mikayla Herrera, 17, agreed. “I want stricter gun laws. I want to come to school not scared. I want to feel safe and be safe.”
Journalism and English teacher Susan Schripsema said she was proud of the students for adding their voices to the national dialogue.
“We’re here to get an education, to support each other, to achieve our goals, gain knowledge and grow in skills, but there are people who will use that against us. You have to speak out.”
In previous decades, she said, students feared the existential threat of nuclear war and conducted drills that had them diving for cover under their desks. Today, students fear the far more real threat of school shooters and practice active shooter drills.
“This is their epic beast and the way these kids are reacting to it is heroic. They are standing up when the epic beast is rearing its head.”
And their message to the beast is clear: “Enough!”