Pissed Off Florida Teens Walk Out of Class to Demand Gun Control Now

Two days after gunman Nikolas Cruz shot and killed 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, students at nearby South Broward High School marched out of class to demand an end to gun violence.

Chanting and waving banners with slogans like “Where’s our safety?” and “How many more?” more than ninety students participated at varying points in Friday morning’s protest, the Palm Beach Post reported.

“We just want some time of reform. We want some attention,” Isaac Adelson, a 14-year-old freshman student, told the Post. “Many of us have friends who passed away. It could have happened to us.”

“We just want to do as much as we can,” Adelson added.

For some at Friday’s protest, the message was an overtly political one.

“Nobody needs an AR-15 rifle for hunting,” student Shane Dale told the Huffington Post. “We need to get rid of assault rifles overall.”

Many of the students’ protest signs also placed blame for their classmates’ deaths squarely at the feet of the National Rifle Association. One student’s message riffed on their acronym by claiming it meant “No Rational Agenda,” while 16-year-old Sara Rodriguez’s sign labeled the gun owners group a “terrorist organization.”

Friday’s protest was the latest in a growing movement of Florida students impacted—either directly, or by proxy—by Wednesday’s mass shooting who have spoken out in favor of gun control and to criticize politicians for their inaction.

In an interview immediately following the shooting, Stoneman student David Hogg chastised those in power who have been unable, or unwilling to act.

“We’re children. You guys are the adults,” Hogg exclaimed. “You need to take some action and play a role. Work together, come over your politics, and get something done.”

During Friday’s rally, WSVN reported that police cruisers were on hand outside the school to ensure the students’ safety.