Shooting guard Klay Thompson spoke to the media about the team’s choice after their Monday night win against the New York Knicks.
“The White House is a great honor, but there are some other circumstances that we felt uncomfortable going,” Thompson said. “We’re not going to politicize anything. We’re going to hang out with some kids, and take them to the African American Museum, and hopefully teach them some things we learned along the way.”
It’s customary for NBA Finals champions to visit the White House. But after the Warriors’ win in June, many players made it clear that they did not want to go because they disagreed with President Donald Trump’s politics. In September, star point guard Stephen Curry shared his views on a possible White House visit with USA Today.
“We don’t stand for basically what our president has — the things that he’s said and the things that he hasn’t said in the right times, that we won’t stand for it,” Curry said. “And by acting and not going, hopefully that will inspire some change when it comes to what we tolerate in this country and what is accepted and what we turn a blind eye to.”
Following Curry’s comments, Trump tweeted thatthe team was uninvited. The team’s head coach, Steve Kerr, decided to let the players choose how they wanted to spend time in the nation’s capital this week while there for a game against the Washington Wizards, according to ESPN.
The team had many options, including holding a ceremony with Democratic politicians, according to NBC News. But the team wanted to depoliticize the D.C. visit.
A recent statement from the Warriors, per the New York Post, indicated the team chose to “constructively use our trip to the nation’s capital in February to celebrate equality, diversity and inclusion — the values that we embrace as an organization.”
Just how easy is it to bring a gun into our schools?
Sadly, it appears to be too easy based on the number of school shootings that are happening on a consistent basis in America.
What can be done? Who is next? How can the students, and the adults responsible for their care, be sure that they won’t be next?
These are extremely frightening questions, yet they are also extremely legitimate ones.
When it comes to the issue of gun violence in the United States, it is safe to say that the bullets don’t discriminate – for the most part. And while there does tend to be a double standard related to the media attention and societal support certain groups receive versus others when it comes to ‘dealing with’ the issue of gun violence in America, the pain that all parents, families and friends experience due to these traumatic experiences is the same – heartbreaking.
Since the beginning of the year, America has found itself once again experiencing a tragic act of domestic terrorism, whereby many young people and adults have been tragically gunned down by an individual or individuals who were easily able to access guns – guns that eventually led to the loss of multiple lives as a result of them carrying out a mass shooting.
Case in point – take the recent mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on February 14, in Parkland, Florida, that has sparked an outcry from many people in the country, particularly many of the students who were impacted by the shooting and are now demanding changes in the gun laws in this country.
In this case, 19-year-old domestic terrorist suspect, Nikolas Cruz, had just legally purchased a semiautomatic AR-15 rifle in February 2017 – a year prior to killing his victims.
According to reports, Cruz caught an Uber to Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, and then proceeded to walk inside the school carrying a black duffel bag and a backpack. Cruz hid loaded magazines in his backpack, until the very moment he decided to pull out his newly acquired AR-15 rifle and start blasting away at people.
All-in-all, Cruz killed seventeen people and fourteen others were transported to local hospitals.
The entire world once again watched in horror as politicians and lawmakers, who are entrusted to lead and serve, offered the victims and their families little more than their thoughts and prayers via Twitter, sound bites and scripted press releases.
Nothing changed. Same thing…Different day.
So, as the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School mass school shooting has been added to the list as one of the deadliest school shootings and acts of domestic terrorism in U.S. history, it has now also been added to the list of tragic mass shooting incidents that have seemingly and sadly become the norm in this country.
Many people remember the tragedy that took place on December 14, 2012, when 20-year-old domestic terrorist Adam Lanza killed twenty 1st graders between the ages of 6 and 7 years of age and six adults with an assault rifle at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut.
Sadly, since the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, there have been roughly 240 other school shootings that have taken place in America with at least 438 people being shot and 138 people being killed. Now of course, school shootings aren’t the only type of mass shootings that have been impacting Americans over the past several years, but it is challenging to know young people are being killed before they have a chance to truly experience life.
Many have argued that this continued loss of life, while tragic, merely reinforces the recurring narrative that America is strongly encouraging a culture of gun violence, particularly because of the flat out refusal of lawmakers to take action and pass any sensible bipartisan gun control legislation. Over the years, the relationship between gun lobbyists and those who make policy has seemingly produced an unwillingness to advance responsible gun safety legislation, and it has caused a major divide amongst many people in this country.
And then, instead of clearly addressing the unrestricted access to high-powered, military-style semiautomatic rifles, like the ones used in the Florida and Las Vegas mass shootings, President Donald J. Trump and many of his supporters have focused on pushing for arming teachers with guns in the classroom. In addition to that, President Trump has also sought to excuse the actions of these domestic terrorists as a mental illness issue rather than a focus on the relatively easy way these individuals can acquire these deadly weapons with no real vetting process.
Many people across America have found President Trump’s mental illness narrative to be a confusing one to find credible, especially considering the fact that Trump’s latest budget proposes dramatically slashing Medicaid, which is the primary source of mental health funding for 70 percent of low-income Americans.
Why acknowledge that mental illness is the issue with gun violence and then turnaround and cut the funding for many low-income Americans who need it, and who suffer from incidents of sustained gun violence in their respective communities?
Speaking of mental illness, there are usually after affects that individuals have to deal with regarding their traumatic experience. Parents suffer, families grieve, students experience trauma, employees and educators have to deal with the stress of coming back to work knowing what had just occurred and whether it could happen again, and many other feelings of fear and concern.
Managing Partners Shantera Chatman and Natalie Arceneaux of PROSCI of C+A Global Group believe that more should be done to help the parents and employees, as well as the students affected by these tragedies and traumatic occurrences.
“For parents affected by a devastating trauma such as a mass shooting at their child’s school, they should really tune-in to their emotions,” says Chatman. “Some parents have lost their children and are literally going through the motions at work. Their best course of action is to check with their employer to understand their benefits. Some companies provide hotlines to counselors and other actually pay for counseling services. These services typically cover the entire family.”
Arceneaux states that those working with people affected by these traumatic incidents should understand that their coworkers will never be the same and it is unrealistic to assume they will ever be.
“Employers should invest in team sensitivity activities or counseling to help those that have to encounter the affected parents,” says Arceneaux. “Understanding the mood swings and the 5 stages of grief go a long way to helping your teammates.”
The issue of mental illness related to coping with tragedy and trauma is important, but it does not deal with the real issue of gun violence in the nation.
Most experts believe that any serious plan to stem the tide of this cycle of violence must include common-sense gun laws. A survey by the Pew Research Center concludes that while Americans say they want to protect the right to bear arms, “they’re very much supportive of many gun policy proposals, including more background checks on private and gun show sales and banning semi-automatic and assault-style weapons.”
One would think that protecting local neighborhoods, schools, students and families would be a bipartisan priority and that elected officials would not be bought and sold to the highest bidder. However, it appears there are many lawmakers that have little to no conviction as it relates to doing what it takes to help reduce the risk that all American citizens face regarding this national epidemic of mass shootings due to gun violence that continues to plague our nation.
Many in the Greater Houston community have been pondering how this type of situation can be prevented, while the debate about gun control rages on.
Here locally, an elected official from the Houston area has called on national lawmakers to address this issue and states that it is time for the state of Texas to take gun laws more seriously.
“It is our responsibility to protect the people from any policies that can have a negative impact on any resident in this country, especially in the city of Houston where I serve,” said Houston City District D Councilmember Dwight A. Boykins. “I am a proud outdoorsman and supporter of the right to bear arms, but I am also an elected leader who serves to promote policies that enhance the safety and security of my constituents.”
Boykins believes that federal elected officials must acknowledge the common sense notion that implementing effective gun control measures does not have to interfere with private gun ownership, but that we must put the safety of children and the citizens first above all things.
“After the 1500+ mass shootings since 2012, they (lawmakers) continue to pursue donations and endorsements from the National Rifle Association, while ignoring the clear and present danger posed by lax gun laws,” said Boykins. “The focus on obtaining the NRA’s support and blessing runs rampant, influencing our politics on all levels of government. Therefore, my plan is to create an environment where we can have this discussion openly and seek to deal with this issue from a grassroots perspective.”
Boykins plans to hold a community town hall meeting on Monday, March 5, 2018, from 6pm to 8pm at Greater Grace Outreach Church located at 10800 Scott St., Houston, TX 77047, where he plans to have a proactive conversation on “Keeping Our Children Safe: How Do We Prevent Gun Violence in Our Communities and Schools?”
Boykins has invited local pastors, Houston Police Department (HPD), Harris County Sheriff’s Department, Precinct 7 Constable Office, Houston Independent School District (HISD) Police, Texas Southern University (TSU) Police, University of Houston (UofH) Police, Houston Community College (HCC) Police, HISD Superintendent, District D School Principals, KIPP, and many more to participate in this much needed discussion.
The Forward Times plans to be a part of these discussions and will keep our readers informed on any new developments surrounding this important issue of gun violence in our country.
U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos announced today new federal assistance for students and schools impacted by Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria and the 2017 California wildfires. An additional $2.7 billion, authorized by the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018, will be used to help K-12 school districts and schools as well as institutions of higher education (IHEs) in their recovery efforts.
“The long road to recovery continues, but these funds should provide vital support to schools and institutions to help them return to their full capabilities as quickly and effectively as possible,” said Secretary DeVos. “I continue to be inspired every day by the dedication shown by educators, administrators and local leaders to getting students’ lives back to normal.”
Secretary DeVos has visited each of the hurricane-impacted areas and continues to be in frequent contact with education leaders as they restore their learning environments. In the immediate aftermath of Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria, the Secretary deployed more than a dozen volunteers as part of the Department of Homeland Security’s Surge Capacity Force across Florida, Puerto Rico, Texas and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The Department continues to regularly send staff to Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Island to provide on-site assistance.
The new Federal assistance announced today will allow the Department to launch the following programs:
(1) Immediate Aid to Restart School Operations (Restart)
Under this program, the Department is authorized to award funds to eligible State educational agencies (SEAs), including those of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Texas and U.S. Virgin Islands. These SEAs, in turn, will provide assistance or services to local educational agencies (LEAs), including charter schools, and private schools to help defray expenses related to the restart of operations in, the reopening of, and the re-enrollment of students in elementary and secondary schools that serve an area affected by a covered disaster or emergency.
(2) Emergency Impact Aid for Displaced Students
Under this program, the Department will award Emergency Impact Aid funding to SEAs, which, in turn, will provide assistance to LEAs for the cost of educating students enrolled in public schools, including charter schools, and private schools, who were displaced by the hurricanes during the school year 2017-2018 and California wildfires in 2017.
Congress appropriated a combined amount of approximately $2.5 billion for both the Restart and Emergency Impact Aid for Displaced Student programs. The amounts awarded under each program will be based on demand and specific data received from eligible applicants.
(3) Assistance for Homeless Children and Youth
Congress appropriated $25 million for additional grants to SEAs for LEAs to address the needs of homeless students displaced by the covered disasters and emergencies. The Department anticipates using data on displaced public school students collected under the Emergency Impact Aid program to make allocations to SEAs under the Assistance for Homeless Children and Youths program. SEAs will award subgrants to LEAs on the basis of demonstrated need. LEAs must use the funds awarded under this program to support activities that are allowable under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act.
(4) Emergency Assistance to Institutions of Higher Education
Congress appropriated $100 million for this program, which will provide emergency assistance to IHEs and their students in areas directly affected by the covered disasters or emergencies, for activities authorized under the Higher Education Act of 1965.
(5) Defraying Costs of Enrolling Displaced Students in Higher Education
Congress appropriated $75 million for this program, which will provide payments to IHEs to help defray the unexpected expenses associated with enrolling displaced students from IHEs directly affected by a covered disaster or emergency, in accordance with criteria to be established and made publicly available.
The Department will be sharing additional information soon, including the application packages and technical assistance, on its “Disaster Relief” webpage at https://www.ed.gov/disasterrelief.
For additional information on the programs for K-12 schools and school districts, please contact David Esquith, Director, Office of Safe and Healthy Students, at David.Esquith@ed.gov. For additional information on the programs for IHEs, please contact Adam Kissel, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Higher Education Programs, Office of Postsecondary Education, at Adam.Kissel@ed.gov.
It’s the type of thing that occasionally makes Twitter lose its virtual mind, and maybe in a good way. Frederick Joseph, a 29-year old Harlem based activist, took it upon himself to start a GoFundMe campaign to buy advance complimentary tickets for at-risk black youth to see eagerly anticipated hit Marvel Comics’ movie Black Panther. Millions of social media handles in the Black Twitterverse were ecstatic, applauding Joseph for the move.
“I knew I wanted to do something for the children, especially of Harlem, because it was a community primarily of color,” Joseph later said during a CNN interview. “I said to myself, how can I get as many children as possible to see this film and see themselves as a superhero or a king or queen?”
Black Panther, with its timely Black History Month release, has eventually become a global box office hit that has many looking for the needed emotional and cultural comfort. Times are urgent, social justice challenges are constant and there has always been a sense that Black History is not as appreciated as it should be. Even when it is as deeply woven into the very foundation and pillars of American society, defining and shaping who we all are, it still suffers from the tragedy of convenient cruelty and selective national memory. Indeed, we could all use a Black History Month observance and a healthy dose of Black History lesson.
But, what sense does it make to celebrate Black History when the condition of our Black youth suggests it may not have much of a future?
The dilemma with Black History Month memoriam is that it carries with it a tendency to tell ourselves that great progress has been achieved. Yet, in terms of educating African American youth, we appear to regress. More important than free tickets to Black Panther matinee showings are functioning educational systems and access to quality alternatives and opportunities. Progress is unreachable when a community fails to reach its academic and intellectual zenith.
African American high school students still lag considerably behind their white and Latino peers. A Johns Hopkins University study of 2015 national graduation rates found they were 74.6 percent for Black students versus 77.8 percent for Latino students and 83.2 percent for whites. The discourse on these rates has simmered somewhat and given us all the impression that we’ve somehow solved the dropout crisis.
Clearly, we haven’t. More than a quarter of black high school students are dropping out, and it’s more pronounced in some states than in others.
Something systemic continues to eat away at full Black student educational progress. While we have seen the narrowing of math and reading test score gaps between Black and white students, 8th grade math score test results compared against white students are worsening more for Black students than for Latino students. And even though 65 percent of Black high school graduates go on to college, just 39 percent of them remain there and finish with a bachelor’s degree.
What’s going on? Quite a bit.
As National Equity Atlas data show, Black students are stuck in high poverty school districts – the majority of Black students in half of the largest U.S. cities go to schools where three quarters of students are considered. Other studies, such as one at Stanford, also prove that high poverty school districts are scoring several grade levels below wealthy school districts. Black students are much more likely to live in distressed socio-economic circumstances plagued by unemployment, depressed access to financial capitol, little to no social mobility and a merciless school-to-prison pipeline. An overwhelming and destructive number of young Black men, over half, are dropping out of high school or receiving diplomas late. When that happens, we find a situation where 1 in 3 of them ends up incarcerated.
The data points are staggering and seemingly endless. Yet, while depressing, it also presents an opportunity moment. We may not be able to solve the current litany of socio-economic ills cutting off Black youth dreams, but we can certainly start to minimize their impact in the present and begin a path towards eliminating them in the future. That starts with re-examining how we educate our children, and a need for creative thinking and fresh models.
In the information age, it defies logic that we’re still having conversations about learning gaps and divides. Existing modes of learning, particularly a public education system that insists on being stuck in an Industrial Age past where students sit in buildings all day, is obviously not the most sensible approach. Instead, educators and school systems must adapt to our highly digitized and fiercely competitive environment – and that doesn’t mean simply putting more laptops in a classroom or increasing the frequency of standardized tests rife with disparities and abuse.
There are encouraging signs that educators are recognizing that the one-classroom-size-fits-all approach doesn’t work for everyone. This is the case in a diverse, multi-cultural and multi-faceted society where students on the K-12 level are faced with a variety of socio-economic circumstances. In fact, white students will only be 46 percent of the public school population by 2024 while Black (15 percent) and brown students (28 percent) will shift into the majority. We need a radical fix before then.
Which is why it’s encouraging to see school systems and policymakers not only exploring, but implementing new learning models whereby curriculum can be easily tailored to the student. No longer should it be just a classroom: it can be a mix of digital learning, expanded course offerings, experiential learning in the field through institutional partnerships, career and technical education, and more. Economically-disadvantaged Black students, faced with daunting challenges, need access to the same doors of opportunities that are available to students with greater economic means.
In his seminal, turn of the 20th century work of American sociology entitled The Souls of Black Folk, the great African American thinker W.E.B. DuBois observed that “[t]his meaning is not without interest to you, Gentle Reader; for the problem of the Twentieth Century is the problem of color line.” That problem persists today, aggravated by education gaps that we should deem unacceptable in the 21st century and beyond. Unchecked, these gaps will prove unsustainable and destructive. This is not just important to our Black students struggling to make their own Black History. It’s absolutely crucial to our collective future and the health of our nation as a whole.
Kevin P. Chavous is an attorney, author, education leader, and president of academics, policy and schools for K12 Inc. He served as a member of the Council of the District of Columbia from January 1993 to January 2005.
U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos will give applicants for federal grants a leg-up if they are planning to embrace things like school choice, STEM, literacy, school climate, effective instruction, career preparation, and serving military-connected children and students in special education.
The department gives away at least $500 million in competitive-grant money every year. Every administration sets “priorities” for that funding. These matter because applicants that include one or more of those priorities in a grant proposal are more likely to get money. The priorities are one of the few vehicles DeVos—or any secretary—has for pushing an agenda without new legislation from Congress…
Read the full article here: May require an Education Week subscription.
Now just over a year in office, U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos continues to be a lightning rod in the field of American education. The debate over her K-12 philosophy and policy ideas remains vigorous in many quarters. Education Week’s opinion editors were interested in hearing from people in the field about what they believe matters most when it comes to schooling children. To that end, we asked a handful of participants to briefly consider if they were given the chance to sit down with the secretary, what issue or course of action would they urge her to prioritize, and how would they make their case. This is what they had to say. —The Editors
Higher Education
It’s no secret that change is underway in education and beyond. Industries are morphing, jobs are shifting, and new careers are emerging because of technology. A century-long trend toward a highly skilled workforce is accelerating, and our economy will demand greater levels of education.
More Americans, both young and old, will need education beyond high school. And our institutions will have to evolve in profound ways to meet their needs.
That’s why we must seize this moment as Congress debates the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act, which governs colleges and universities and provides them with federal financial support. Our national legislative framework must enable and encourage the changes we will need over the next decades to build a stronger system for higher education. Our country has changed significantly since the act was last reauthorized in 2008…
Read the full article here. May require an education week subscription.
After nearly a century of educating Black students, Concordia College in Selma, Alabama announced on Wednesday that it will cease operations at the end of the spring semester.
“It was the toughest thing I’ve had to do in my 50 years of higher education,” Dr. James Lyons, the interim president of Concordia, told the Selma Times Journal, adding that the students “were quite shocked” by the news.
Like Concordia, many of the more than 100 HBCUs across the nation have dire financial problems, partly because operating costs are increasing while enrollment and financial aid decrease. Students at HBCUs are disproportionately low-income. About 70 percent of all HBCU students rely on federal grants and work-study programs to finance their education at a time when the Trump administration seeks ways to cut higher education funding.
Concordia, which opened in 1922, needed a minimum of $8 million to pay its debts and keep the doors open for at least one year—just enough money to buy time to find major investors. “It’s very difficult to operate an institution with the lowest possible tuition and fees when you are faced with escalating costs,” Lyons stated.
HBCUs are worth fighting for because, despite the challenges, they educate scores of Black students who would otherwise not attend college. These institutions accept scores of “at risk” students who need remedial academic work after graduating from public school systems that failed to educate them. Although they represent just 3 percent of all colleges and universities, HBCUs graduate more than 20 percent of Black college students and a disproportionately higher percentage of students who earn STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) degrees, compared to majority White institutions.
High school teachers from Maryland and Washington gathered in front of the White House to demonstrate to demand President Trump address the issue of gun violence in the wake of 17 killed at a mass shooting in Parkland, Fla. The students earlier marched to the Capitol to tell congressional leaders they want action to keep them safe from gun violence. PHOTO: Amiyah King/Howard University News Service
By Amiyah King
(Trice Edney News Wire/Howard University News Service) – Tens of thousands of high school students across America were marked with an unexcused absence Wednesday, but everyone knew where they were.
In the Washington area, high school students from DC. Public Schools and from public schools in Maryland marched to the Capitol and then to the White House to demand Congress and the president institute gun control legislation that will keep them safe. The march was organized by students from Richard Montgomery High School in Rockville, Md., and Bethesda-Chevy Chase in Montgomery County, Md., in response to the recent shooting in Parkland, Fla.
It was exactly one week ago Wednesday that 19-year-olf Nikolas Cruz opened fire at Stoneman Douglas High School, killing 17 students and wounding dozens more. Cruz, who had been expelled from the school, was charged with 17 accounts of murder of his classmates, teachers and other school officials. The shooting was the 18th school shooting in the first two months of this year.
Student survivors at the school have launched a nationwide effort to focus attention on gun control in the wake of the shooting. Other student demonstrations were reported in Illinois, Florida and Texas.
Washington-area students walked out of their classes today at 9:30 a.m. where they followed each other in procession to Union Station where they joined other protestors who took public transportation from Maryland. From Union Station, thousands of high schoolers marched to Capitol Hill and later participated in a sit-in demonstration outside the White House.
During the sit-in, students gathered in a semi-circle to hear leaders talk about why they were there.
“No more thoughts and prayers,” said student leader Daniel Shepard. “If this isn’t the last school shooting, we’ll be out here every opportunity we get.”
In response to the speakers, students shouted, “No more silence and gun violence. Hey, hey. Ho, ho. the NRA (National Rifle Association) has got to go.”
Teachers and parents were mixed with the crowd of demonstrations either as chaperones or to provide support for their children and their cause.
“I don’t think they need my help,” said Mandi Mader, mother of three who attended the march in support of her children. “I’m just one more body to represent them here.”
Classmates, from left, Sally Egan, Emma McMillan and Avery Brooks are classmates display their signs seekingbetter gun control. There were similar student rallies across the nation. PHOTO: Amiyah King/Howard University News Service
Most students said they were advocating for the implementation of gun control laws in Congress as a solution to the crisis.
Talia Fleischer, a sophomore at her high school, said she hopes to see “a sign that something will be done in Congress.”
“Countries like Australia and England have great gun control laws, and they have no mass shootings,” she said.
In 1996, Australia passed the National Firearms Agreement after a mass shooting in Tasmania in April of that year. In that incident, a 28-year-old man, armed with a semi-automatic rifle, shot and killed 35 people, and injured 18 others<http://www.loc.gov/law/help/firearms-control/australia.php>, in what was known as the Port Arthur Massacre. Under the 1996 law, Australia banned certain semi-automatic, self-loading rifles and shotguns, and imposed stricter licensing and registration requirements.
Paul DeVries and his daughter, Brechje DeVries, were among the demonstrators. Brechje DeVries, 17, moved from the Netherlands to the United States a year ago and attends high school in Maine. Her father was in the U.S. for one of her sports activities in the Washington, and the two decided to attend the demonstration.
Brechje DeVries said mass shootings are almost unheard of in her country. Her country has experienced only one mass shooting in its history. She said she is stunned and frightened by their frequency in the United States.
“It’s scary,” she said. “There have been threats at schools near me, so it definitely comes close to me.”
Her father said he is worried for his daughter.
“I feel the frustration,” he said. “There are a lot of teenagers here. and I think that speaks for itself.”
Joseph Byler, a senior at his school, said the Florida shooting is what sparked him to attend.
“[I hope] the inability of Congress to pass gun control policies disappears,” Byler said. “I hope after today, we get universal background checks on gun purchases.”
Since the shooting in Florida, President Trump has flirted with the idea of proposing restrictions to purchasing guns, from more intense background checks for gun purchasers to the elimination of bump stocks, the tool the Las Vegas shooter used to kill more than 50 people.
Via Twitter, Trump said, “Whether we are Republican or Democrat, we must now focus on strengthening Background Checks!”
Trump, who received millions of dollars in support from the National Rifle Association in his run for presidency, until now has consistently backed away from any restrictions on guns.
Student protestor Steven Vasquez said his school has armed security and students feel relatively safe.
“But not right now,” Vasquez said. “Hopefully our kids dying will help the government see that they need to do something.”
Regrettably, in the wake of another mass shooting in this country, the GOP has responded in its usual fashion: guarded lip service and no thought of political action. If there has been one ray of hope in the aftermath of this horrific event, it’s been the courageous response of the individuals that were directly affected: the surviving high school students.
Leon D. Young
In recent days, Emma Gonzalez, a student at the Parkland, Florida high school where 17 people were left dead after a mass shooting has become the public face and the strident voice of what potentially could become a real movement to enact commonsense gun control measures. And, what’s really telling – this response is being led by the students themselves. The young, articulate senior, in delivering remarks in the aftermath of this senseless tragedy, pulled no punches in expressing her grief and outright anger. She explicitly stated, “If all our government and president can do is send thoughts and prayers, then it’s time for victims to be the change we need to see.”
As protests and rallies continue to crop up across the country, in support of gun control action, the Alt-right and Republicans have begun to push back with some ridiculous assertions. For instance, an aide to Florida State Representative Shawn Harrison, using state email, sent out a picture and message alleging: “Both kids in the picture are not students here but actors that travel to various crisis when they happen.”
Contributing to this lunacy, former US Congressman Jack Kingston, a Georgia Republican, sent out the following tweet: O really? “Students” are planning a nationwide rally? Not left-wing gun control activists using 17yr kids in the wake of a tragedy? #Soros #Resistance #Antifa #DNC.”
Meanwhile, the asinine occupant in the White House has offered his perspective on this horrific incident. In his statement to the media following the event, Trump never mentioned the word guns during his remarks, rather he talked about mental illness as being the culprit. This clueless president is even on record for being in support of militarizing our schools – teachers and coaches having access to handguns, to combat this reoccurring threat.
Here’s the naked truth: The mass shooting mania that grips this nation is directly linked to the ready availability of assault weapons and guns that can be converted into automatic weapons. Moreover, assault weapons serve no legitimate, recreational purpose, but are intended solely to maim and kill on a mass scale.
Student activism is not a new phenomenon in this country. During the Civil Rights struggle the Freedom Riders, who were mostly college students, led “sit-ins” at segregated lunch counters throughout the South. This new call to action by students is real, wonderful to see, and hopefully will be the catalyst for meaningful gun control change.
WRITTEN BY: 
U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos announced today new federal assistance for students and schools impacted by Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria and the 2017 California wildfires. An additional $2.7 billion, authorized by the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018, will be used to help K-12 school districts and schools as well as institutions of higher education (IHEs) in their recovery efforts.
U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos will give applicants for federal grants a leg-up if they are planning to embrace things like school choice, STEM, literacy, school climate, effective instruction, career preparation, and serving military-connected children and students in special education.
