![March on Washington for Gun Control. - [Image credit – Slowking4, Wikimedia Commons]](https://staticr1.blastingcdn.com/media/photogallery/2018/3/15/660x290/b_502x220x82/march-on-washington-for-gun-control-image-credit-slowking4-wikimedia-commons_1886757.jpg "March on Washington for Gun Control. - [Image credit – Slowking4, Wikimedia Commons]")
The lawmakers are hesitant to take a tough stand on strict Gun Control measures to ensure safety in schools. This is a matter of concern for the students. Therefore, the survivors of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting took to the streets to express their anxiety and fears over Gun Violence. They witnessed the coldblooded murder of their classmates on Valentine's Day and assembled in the football field with banners and signs to protest the inaction on the part of the authorities.
Sky News reports that students from all over the country walked out of classrooms, demanding tighter gun safety laws following the tragic shooting incident in Parkland, Florida.
The 19-year-old gunman shot dead 17 people and is now in police custody.
Actions taken so far
Gun ownership in the United States is guaranteed by the Constitution's Second Amendment. Subsequent to the Florida massacre, some students met President Donald Trump. They wanted the administration to introduce stricter gun control to avoid repetition of gun violence in school premises that could endanger the lives of the children.
The movement initiated by the student community has forced a change of law in Florida where the minimum age to purchase rifles has been raised from 18 to 21. However, there appears to be hesitation on the part of politicians to agree to an outright ban on the type of weapon that had been employed in the mass shooting.
Similar is the case for strengthening background checks for gun sales. A section of the students chanted slogans in protest outside the White House gates. The president was, at the time, away in California.
The organizers of the mass walkout said students from more than 2,800 schools and groups participated in the protest. It had the backing of the American Civil Liberties Union apart from a section of the media.
Gun violence incidents
The magnitude of the problems related to gun violence must be realized by those in power. According to ABC15, there were reports of 346 mass shootings in 2017. This was slightly less compared to 2016 which had seen 384 cases. The Week UK adds that between 2014 and 2017, more than 2700 children under the age of 12 were killed by guns.
Before that, in December 2012, a gunman shot dead more than 20 children at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut. The latest classroom massacre in Florida has brought the focus back to gun control. Easy access to deadly weapons like guns is not in the interest of children and teenagers. It is for the parents and guardians to ensure that these are kept out of reach of youngsters.
