1000s Of PA Students Walk Out In Call For Gun Reforms

Thousands of Philadelphia-area students participated in a National School Walkout event Wednesday morning. Most schools reported peaceful events, with students taking the time to honor the lives lost in Parkland, Florida and airing their concerns about gun violence in schools.

In addition to honoring the victims, the walkout is a call for lawmakers to take action on stricter gun laws, organizers said.

Starting at 10 a.m., students from across Pennsylvania and the nation left their classrooms for 17 minutes. Each minute honored one of the victims killed in the Feb. 14 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.

Most of the events went off without a hitch, and many were supported by school administrators. But that was not the case everywhere.

Students at Council Rock North High School in Newtown, Bucks County were threatened with discipline if they left the building during the school walkout, which administrators had recast as a "class walkout." Students there reported school employees placed chairs and desks in front of doorways during the 17-minute event Wednesday. Photos were shared on social media.

More than 100 students, defying the threats of discipline, did in fact leave the building. Students who left will face detention, sources tell Patch.

At Lower Merion High School in Montgomery County, about 500 students participated in the walkout. During the 17 minutes, students there gave speeches on gun control, their experiences with gun violence, and honor those lost to gun violence following the walkout. See the video here.

Students at Hatboro-Horsham High School were joined by State Representative Todd Stephens (R-151) and members of the Hatboro-Horsham School Board during their walkout. Read more here.

Hundreds of North Penn High School students participated with the support of its school board.

At the Central Bucks School District, where at least six schools said they'd be participating, peaceful events were reported and attended by the local police department. Read more here. And at Pennsbury, students read names of Parkland victims and reflected quietly, sources report.

Share your photos and tips from today's walkout events by emailing Kara.Seymour@Patch.com

Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images