Why I march
Senior and Organizer, Blake Mitchell, stands with his sign reading, “How many more lives? Enough is enough.”
On Saturday, Mar. 24, millions of students from across the country united together in the wake of the Parkland shooting to protest for stricter gun legislation. I had the honor of helping in the organization of the sister march in Danville, VA.
More than 60 students and adults gathered together at the Community Market on Craghead St. in Danville to march to City Hall in order to protest for legislation, such as the ban of assault weapons, bump stocks, and stricter universal background checks.
As students led the march, they chanted phrases such as, “No more silence, end gun violence” and “Spread love, not hate, we just want to graduate.”
Individuals carried signs reading, “Enough,” and wore t-shirts that said, “March for Our Lives.”
Now, before I start, I want to explain the nature of this issue. This is a bipartisan issue. It is. This is not a republican issue. This is not a democratic issue. This is a human issue. And that is why I stand for it.
Statistics show that the majority of mass shootings have been carried out with assault-style weapons. Our strongest hope is that we can reduce the amount of mass shootings and reduce the number of lives lost. No one wants a world where people are slaughtered almost every day out of the year.
There is something different about the March for Our Lives movement: young people. Young people are often targeted as individuals who are not willing to wait for what they want, and in some cases, they are right. This march was the biggest march led by young people since the Vietnam War. If that doesn’t say something, then I don’t know what does.
From my perspective as an organizer, it was an amazing and empowering feeling to have people join me and march in support of the same thing as me. This is a subject that I am truly passionate about, and I didn’t realize that until this event. This is the first moment that sparked my interest in American politics and it made me want to make a difference and a change.
I do want to acknowledge, however, why I marched and why I am in support of this issue. I feel that if a person has an opinion, no matter what it is, they should be able to explain it and tell why, not just say they are for or against it. Many people like to say that they are for or against something, and call people things like, “ignorant,” but don’t have a valid cause for being for or against it other than they “don’t agree with it.”
As I mentioned earlier, I am marching to push Congress to pass gun legislation like the banning of assault-style weapons, bump stocks, and stricter universal background checks. I stand for this because I believe that it is unnecessary to have the sale of assault-style weapons that were made for military use and have no other function other than “fun” outside of the military.
Nikolas Cruz, the young man who murdered 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, and various other mass shooters have used an AR-15 semi-automatic style weapon, which was military-inspired and is considered an assault weapon. In my opinion, if a weapon was meant for war, that is where it should stay.
Additionally, background checks in this country are not strong enough. If someone that has been flagged with a mental health disorder that makes them a risk to society, they should not be allowed to go to a gun show and purchase a gun. This is not me being discriminatory to people with mental health disorders. According to the World Health Organization, one in four people suffer from a mental disorder. This being said, not every person with a mental disorder is a risk to society. However, people that have been reported numerous times as a risk, or dangerous, should not be cleared to purchase a weapon. Simple as that.
As far as the second amendment goes, I have nothing against the second amendment. In fact, I am a full supporter of the second amendment. However, I believe the intent behind the second amendment, put forth by our founding fathers, has been muddled in NRA nonsense. There is a big difference between banning all guns, and just placing restrictions on some.
The second amendment is stated this way: “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”
Many people confuse this statement. Some take it as meaning individuals shall be able to bear arms in order to defend themselves against the government, or to overthrow the government. This is not true. A free state, in the time of our founding fathers, was perceived as the “free[dom] of the State[s], controlled by the government.” This meant that citizens were given the right to bear arms in order to protect themselves from someone threatening their free state, such as Florida or Texas, which at the time, were their own States (meaning country). This being said, the second amendment does not give individuals the right to bear arms to protect themselves from a tyrannical government because it is stated as a free State under the government.
I am proud of my peers that went to DC, and I am proud of my peers that marched along beside me. I am proud that they have the bravery and courage to stand up for the things they believe in.
Change is not coming. It’s here.
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Blake Mitchell is a THS senior and this is his first year writing for the Trojan Messenger. He is the president of the Interact Club and Drum Major of...
