Students participating in the walkout at Middletown High School
MID-HUDSON – Students in several school districts in Hudson Valley counties Wednesday participated in the student walkouts a month to the day after 15 students and two teachers were murdered by a gunman in Parkland, Florida.
Schools were locked down and guarded by police as the students spent 17 minutes outside to remember those who were killed and to call for restrictions on assault weapons.
At many schools, visitors and reporters were not allowed on campus as the students rallied.
Congresswoman Nita Lowey (D, NY-17) called for the gun violence to stop and praised the students who called on Washington to do something.
“Another life cannot be lost by a gun violence incident. We have to take action, whether it is background checks or raising the age, we know what we have to do. Let’s do it now,” Lowey said.
State Senate Democratic Minority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D, Yonkers), lent her support to the “bright young students” who organized the walkouts.
“The gun epidemic is a public health crisis and a safety risk for every student, and to ignore their efforts would be unconscionable. They understand the gravity of the situation in a way many in power do not and are fighting to make their schools and communities safe for everyone.”
Stewart-Cousins said she will “continue to fight to pass common-sense gun laws in the state legislature.”
