North Penn Students Walk Out In Protest Of Gun Violence

LANSDALE, PA — Hundreds of North Penn High School students walked out of school Wednesday morning in a call for stricter gun laws.

The 17-minute walkout was one of hundreds held across the nation Wednesday at 10 a.m. as part of the National School Walkout. The event is in honor of the 17 victims massacred at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida on Valentine's Day.

But it's meant to be more than a memorial. While the national campaign does not point to specific legislation, characterizing their stance only as "meaningful federal gun reform," it does specifically demand "more than tweets of thoughts and prayers" as a response.

While many school districts held indoor events or other symbolic gestures to show solidarity with the national movement, North Penn students actually walked outside, gathering in the parking lot outside of the school.

And unlike several more districts in the Philadelphia area, North Penn students had the support of their administration in the walkout. North Penn Superintendent Curt Dietrich was there himself to support district staff and to oversee the safety of the event.

"The North Penn School District will not succumb to the helpless inaction that so often follows these tragedies," the school board said in a statement released last week. "The North Penn School Board wholeheartedly supports the students of North Penn High School as they stand in solidarity with the students of Parkland. We admire and encourage the efforts of our students that join countless students nationwide in non-disruptive advocacy for an end to gun violence in our schools. Leadership means facing difficult realities, we support this learning opportunity for our North Penn student body."

After school is over, a schoolwide assembly will be held, including lawmakers and leaders of various nonprofits who will address issues of gun violence and school safety.

The school board said that regardless of what side of the gun debate students fell on, they wanted to do everything they could to support civic engagement.

"We are impressed by the attention to detail and care of the administration’s process in order to facilitate an increased level of civil discourse and a depth of understanding that reinforces the best characteristics of citizenship in our student body," the board added.

The high school campus was closed to visitors during the walkout. The closure was in place from 9:45 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.; no outside visitors will be allowed at the assembly, either.

The behavior of North Penn administration to student activism is in sharp contrast to neighboring districts like Spring-Ford and Council Rock, which will discipline students for walking out of school Wednesday.

#NationalSchoolWalkout North Penn Highschool is with you pic.twitter.com/NvvD5E1J9Y
— cizorj (@cizorj) March 14, 2018

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