What prompted you to organize the protest at St. Petersburg High School?
We both feel very strongly on the subject of gun reform laws and wanted to make our voices heard. On March 14, we participated in a "walkout" at our school, where we were only allowed to stand outside of our classroom doors for 17 minutes in silence. I was extremely upset that we were not allowed to go outside of the school and participate in an actual walkout like so many other schools were doing. So, I went home that day and registered our school for the April 20 national school walkout day and knew that I didn't want to be quiet anymore. We are supposed to be using our voices to demand change and action, so that's why we are doing what we, and countless other students, are doing tomorrow. To raise our voices and let the nation know that we're still here and that this conversation hasn't disappeared.
How have the adults in your life reacted to your ideas for a protest?
Many adults in my life have been extremely supportive of our ideas for a protest. My parents are the original ones who really helped me get involved in this movement. They helped me hold my own rally about a month ago, and since then I have just seen nonstop support from everyone around me. It's been really empowering.
What has been the reaction from SPHS administration?
We actually haven't had communication with the administration until today. About a month ago I was in the process of organizing a student-entered rally for sensible gun laws at the school. I had been working with my administration on it for about three weeks and then three days before the rally was supposed to happen, they called it off due to the the opinion of the Pinellas County area superintendent and from getting backlash from parents. So after that I never really trusted them and thought that they would just try everything they could to stop us from walking out if they knew our plans. I got called down to the office today and it turns out the principal was pretty OK with it. They are requiring that students have to have a note from a parent in order to participate. Although it's not as ideal as it would be if we had full support from administration, but it's better than nothing.
What do you hope to accomplish with the protest?
I hope to get more kids involved in the conversation on gun reform. We are having voter registration at the school and the rally, so I'm hoping a lot of kids will get registered to vote. I think our main goal is to basically send a message that we are indeed still here and are just as angry as we were a month ago. We won't stop fighting for this. And I hope it encourages other students to stand up and fight with us.
What will you say to Mayor Rick Kriseman once you march to City Hall?
I will thank him for standing by us in the fight on gun reform. And for supporting young activists, such as Nicole [the co-organizer of the rally at SPHS] and I.
If you could say three things to the Florida congressmen who take money from the NRA, what would you say?
One, you turn your head away from the issue at hand and are paid for your silence by the NRA. Two, you are accountable for the deaths of these children and teachers and the ones that follow them. Three, politicians like you, who place money and campaign contributions from the NRA ahead of us and our safety, should no longer have a place at the table
How do you interpret the second amendment?
I think the second amendment's meaning has been altered throughout history. Too many people have just accepted this mass slaughter as a necessary sacrifice to an amendment written when guns only held one bullet and took five minutes to reload. I completely understand that people use their right to own guns in order to protect themselves and others; however, I think it is utterly unnecessary for any civilian to own a military-style assault weapon and know that the second amendment's intended purpose wasn't written at a time where on an average day 96 Americans are killed by guns.
This article appears in Apr 19-26, 2018.