Salem High School Students Honor Victims Of Parkland Shooting

SALEM, MA -- Students at Salem High School walked out of classes at 10 am Friday as part of a national movement to call attention to gun violence and school shootings. The walkout had been rescheduled after snow canceled the original walkout on Wednesday, which would have been held in conjunction with similar walkouts at schools across the country.

Students from around the state did, however, gather at the State House in Boston Wednesday. Chants of "No justice, no peace!" and "Hey hey, ho ho, the NRA has got to go" flooded the Boston Common paths as the protest moved from the Cathedral Church of St. Paul to the State House; police stopped traffic to let them cross the street. "Not in our schools, not in our streets" rung out in front of the General (Joseph) Hooker Entrance to the State House, which turned into "State House? Our house!"

In Salem and several other Massachusetts communities, the walkouts were done with the blessing of school administrators.

The Florida shooting was the seventh of 13 school shootings that have left 23 people dead 43 people injured since the start of the year. The walkouts, which were initially proposed by organizers behind the Women's March, are being held to "protest Congress' inaction to do more than tweet thoughts and prayers in response to the gun violence plaguing our schools and neighborhoods."

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Photos of students during Wednesday's State House rally by Jenna Fisher/Patch