Greenwich Students Walk Out Of Class To Support Second Amendment

GREENWICH, CT — Students at least one Connecticut school joined others across the country Wednesday in walking out of school. But unlike recent walkouts rallies and marches that were organized to call for stricter gun laws, these kids did so to show their support for the Second Amendment and their constitutional right to bear arms.

In Connecticut, four walkouts were planned as part of the event, "Stand for the Second.” The schools are located in Greenwich, Durham, Storrs Center and Ellington. The walkouts were to begin at 10 a.m. and the students were supposed to return to class 16 minutes later.

But Patch has only confirmed that several students at Greenwich High School followed through with the walkout. In that walkout, students holding signs in support of guns gathered outside the schools main entrance with their backpacks.

One sign read: "The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun, is a good guy with a gun," WCBS880 reported.

One student who chose to walk out told the news outlet that Republicans are often surpressed and not allowed to value their own opinions.

Students at Greenwich HS walked out of school today to support gun rights and @StandSecond movement. School officials say students are allowed to protest. My story this afternoon on @wcbs880 pic.twitter.com/adqgIFQDpO
— Mack Rosenberg (@MackRosenberg) May 2, 2018

Roughly 400 schools were expected to participate, Will Riley, the high school senior who launched the demonstrations, told Fox News.

Click here to see if a school near you participated.

The organizers said there’s been a lot attention and focus recently on the need to create new laws to restrict gun in order to make schools safer. But there hasn’t been a lot of attention for those who want to protect their constitutional right to own a gun, according to the website.

“That’s what Stand for the Second is all about,” the website said.

Riley, a high school senior from Carlsbad, New Mexico, told Fox News protecting the right to bear arms is as important now as it ever has been in light of recent calls for repeal, including by former Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens.

“I think all of our constitutional rights are important, but I think the Second Amendment is somewhat special in that it’s meant to protect the others,” he told the news outlet. “It’s so important right now because no one is calling to repeal the other amendments, but if you repeal one, then you set the precedent that it’s something you can do.”

Organizers said those who wanted to participate were encouraged to do so, even if they felt intimidated.

The latest demonstration comes amid a national conversation about gun violence and the role of gun control, spurned by the Valentine’s Day massacre at a high school in Parkland, Florida. That shooting sparked massive student-led demonstrations, including the March For Our Lives event and a nationwide student walkout.

Photo credit: Patrick Smith/Getty Images