This issue affects us all

Editor’s note: Brianna Stanco is an Oceanside High School senior and the co-editor in chief of the school news publication, the Sider Press.

Wednesday, March 14, marked the one-month anniversary of the tragic mass shooting at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Students across the country walked out of their classrooms to honor the victims of the shooting and to peacefully demonstrate their desire for change. Here at Oceanside High School, I was one of roughly 300 students who decided to bear the cold and spend 17 minutes on the football field listening to each victim’s name as they were said over the loudspeaker.
Reading stories of how other schools forcibly blocked exits, threatened to cancel school activities such as prom and scheduled drills purposefully during the time of the walkout, I am grateful that OHS faculty and staff respected our right to protest, and took precautionary measures to ensure our safety in the process. The Student Council, who organized the event, did so in a manner that avoided the stickiness of politics while also shining light on the curable pandemic that is mass shootings.
In the days leading up to the walkout, talk among the student body varied greatly. Many deemed the event as a left-leaning demonstration in favor of gun reform, and on the day of stayed glued to their seats when the clock read 10 a.m. Although the Student Council tried to establish that the primary purpose of the walkout was to honor the 17 lives lost in Parkland, this was not enough to convince many students that there was no ulterior political agenda. No one knew exactly how many of us would actually walk out, and I believe that fact alone made some students too scared to go through with it.

Considering that OHS has a student population of about 1,800, a 300-student turnout is considerable, but speaks to what I would describe as a lack of awareness. The truth is that the United States makes up roughly five percent of the world’s population, but is home to more than 30 percent of the world’s mass shootings. When looking at those numbers, I become confused as to why less than 20 percent of the student body participated in the protest. This issue does not affect just 20 percent of us — it affects all of us.
The events that occurred at Parkland triggered a countrywide debate, and incited what will likely be the biggest student protest of our generation. It has produced some of our nation’s newest leaders, and has refused to lose traction as news cycles end and begin again. The walkout helped bring the conversation back into the spotlight, and showed the commitment of thousands of students across the country who want to make a change.
I am thankful to every student who protested, especially those who forgot their jackets and had to sit in 40-degree weather in just a t-shirt to make sure their voice was heard. It made me hopeful for our future generation, not only here in Oceanside, but across the country. Although change starts with us, it cannot be realized unless change is made at a higher level. We voiced our desires, and now it is time for our legislators to take action. Nikolas Cruz obtained the firearms used to kill those 17 lives too easily. Unless action is taken by our government to increase firearm regulation, there will be another Nikolas Cruz, and there will be another Parkland.