Disabled Bellmore student moved to leadership on gun violence

Glorianna Jackson, a physically disabled student at the Henry Viscardi School, was described as shy and quiet before the Feb. 14 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Fla., made national headlines. The shooting galvanized Glorianna, however, and now she is a leader in her community.

Glorianna, 15, of Bellmore, has spina bifida, and uses a wheelchair. Typically, her teachers said, Viscardi students make their voices heard by advocating for disability awareness — the school is a state-supported special education facility for severely disabled students. After the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, which left 17 students and staff dead, Glorianna went a different route.

It started when students at schools nationwide organized a simultaneous walkout in March to stand against gun violence. Glorianna decided to follow the movement and organized Viscardi’s own walkout, urging other students and staff to join.

“A friend and I found out about the shooting,” she said, “and we didn’t think twice. We wanted to be part of the movement.”

She immediately began approving the walkout with the school’s staff and led a large portion of the student body to participate.

“She is the first school-wide activist, in terms of political activism,” said Lauren Feldmann, Glorianna’s science teacher. “And it was all her, all guided by her.”

“We walked out to the courtyard one by one and just sat in silence,” said Amy Graffeo-Rastetter, Glorianna’s former social studies teacher. “It was a somber experience, and very powerful. But for Glorianna, it had to be done.”

“Nobody else had taken a stand in this way,” Monica Adams, her guidance counselor, said. “She rallied the troops and got the whole school involved.”

Students and staff donned shirts with “Choose Kind” printed on them during the walkout, and continue to wear them for each monthly anniversary of the shooting.

Students also held posters, each with the name of one victim, during the walkout. The posters were raised for one minute to give a moment of silence to each victim.

Glorianna wanted to take it a step further, too, by raising funds for the victims with a bake sale. She was able to raise almost $300, which she will funnel into a GoFundMe page to raise even more, and spread awareness.

On Oct. 24, she was recognized for her efforts. The Health and Wellfare Council of Long Island held a Halloween Ball honoring three students for overcoming adversity and becoming leaders for social justice.

In her speech accepting the honor, she recalled the walkout being shared on Viscardi’s official Twitter account, and the host of offensive comments that came in from other users.

“Now, I bet you’re all imagining that we were all extremely offended and discouraged by these comments, correct?” Glorianna said. “I can promise you, it was the complete opposite. It made us want to work harder, not only to spread more awareness about gun control, but also to prove that people with disabilities do have voices and can be active members in their society. We took these comments as an opportunity to see how much of a change we still need to make, and to get out there and do more than we’ve done before.”

The audience, according to her teachers, cried during her speech.

“I don’t know how many would be willing to do the same,” Graffeo-Rastetter said. “Some people were giving her flak, but she was willing to put herself out there.”

Glorianna’s leadership is also showing through her school activities. She helped formed the school’s first Gay-Straight Alliance, and was elected vice president of the school’s student council. When she decided to run, she was only a freshman, running against soon-to-be seniors.

“Glorianna is a once-in-a-lifetime student,” Adams said.

Gun violence, especially in schools, Glorianna said, is “really frightening.”

“Things really need to change,” she said. “We need to come together instead of being divided.”