#NeverAgain: Vermont student activists demand gun safety
In the wake of a school shooting in Parkland, Florida that killed 17 people, students from around Vermont have streamed out of their schools and into the Vermont State House to demand new gun control laws. They are part of a national grassroots student movement for gun safety saying #NeverAgain. The response has been remarkable: Gov. Phil Scott has reversed his previous opposition to gun control and now backs universal background checks, confiscation of weapons from those deemed an “extreme risk,” and raising the minimum age to 21 for someone to purchase a gun. Nationally, major retailers such as Dick’s Sporting Goods and Walmart will no longer sell guns to anyone under 21, and serious discussion about gun control is now on the table. Students have led this movement and intend to keep up the pressure with protests, walkouts, and appearances in the State House. We speak to three student activists who traveled to the Vermont State House to demand action and say #NeverAgain.
Meagan Filkowski, Gabe Groveman, Hannah Pandya, Senior, Harwood Union High School, Moretown, Vt.; 8th grader, Twinfield Union High School, Marshfield, Vt.; Senior, St. Johnsbury Academy, St. Johnsbury, Vt.
