Why we marched: Sonoma teens on their Washington protest
A group of 13 Sonoma Valley High School students journeyed to Washington, DC last month to join fellow teens for the March For Our Lives to protest gun violence.
“It was an outstanding experience to be surrounded by 800,000 other like-minded individuals who were passionate about gun control,” said SVHS senior Amy Stanfield of the March 24 rally. “It’s time for change, and I feel very lucky to have been a part of a revolution that will most definitely be in history books.”
Stanfield said the trip, funded in part by an online donation campaign, arose spontaneously as a reaction to the Parkland shooting in Florida. She was connected with Wendy Westerbeke, who was looking for politically active high school students to send to Washington for the March. “I reached out to my model UN club and received a lot of enthusiasm from the group,” Stanfield said.
“We have plans to continue our protests and to raise awareness about gun control by speaking in the community and hopefully at middle schools in the near future,” she added.
Here is what some of the participants had to say about their experience:
Ava Rognlien: I’m a junior at SVHS. To me, the March For Our Lives represented a beginning to a revolution. Young people are banding together to end not only gun violence in schools, but also everyday gun violence, which involves fighting racism and oppression. The March was an inspiration to all that seek to create positive change in our nation.
Ali Declercq: The highlight for me was hearing the speeches from other people my age. They were from LA to Chicago, DC, and Florida, and all of their stories emphasized how gun violence is an issue plaguing every corner of the nation. Their speeches were deeply inspiring and moving.
Andrew Powers: My highlight would probably be during one of the speeches—Emma González’s, I think—when everybody was silent and put their hands up in a peace sign. Through their fingers I could see the Capital Building in the background and it seemed so symbolic—over a million people were at the politicians’ doorstep demanding change. I guess we’ll see which ones did their job and listened to the American public and which ones will be out of a job soon!
Emma Maggioncalda: I am a senior at SVHS. We had the opportunity to go to a smaller rally before the large March. There we heard several local students from high schools in DC speak about gun violence that had affected them personally in a multitude of ways—at school, in the streets, and at home. It was an entirely unforeseen and moving experience to see the violence that many have become immune to on such a personal scale in such close proximity to students like us that have been forever changed by gun violence. Their fervor and articulation allowed us to enter the larger march more aware of the complexity of the issue. The entire rally and March had an incredibly wholesome feeling that I believe stemmed from a mutual appreciation for all those present. We all have such passion for this issue and it was an incredibly unique experience to be united with such a large mass of people who shared this passion.
Kimberly Uzzo: I think the most inspiring parts for me were the student speakers from all over the United States, each with their own experience with gun violence. One of the students from Chicago repeated, “Everyday shootings are everyday problems,” showing that gun violence is much larger than only school shootings. We need to begin to find a solution across the aisle to help increase background checks and increase the buying age. No longer will the NRA continue to hold more power than our votes.
Grace Turner: I went to the March because I feel extremely passionate about the movement and believed it was a great opportunity to demonstrate the importance of gun control on a larger scale. Especially following Parkland, I was inspired by the movement started by youths that blew up the media and brought more global awareness to the true monstrosity of the problem. I also hoped to get a better understanding of the root of the problem, traveling all the way to the nation’s capital. In reality I got more than that, being able to listen to so many individuals’ personal stories concerning gun violence. My eyes were opened wider to the problem so many in the United States face every day, something I feel so protected from in little Sonoma. I hope to take this new perspective and use it to help make a change in our world.
Cian Martin: Aside from the March itself, which was indescribably powerful, one of the most interesting moments of the trip happened as we were leaving the March. We were sitting down on the lawn in front of the capitol building and we were people-watching. Seeing the enthusiasm, passion, and diversity in the group even as they were going home was incredible. There was a complete calm, as if it were just a normal, perhaps slightly crowded, day in DC, which both contrasted and completely bolstered the tone of the March for me.
Aliya Blinman: Seeing stories with the words “school” and “shooting” in the title became a cruel pattern that no longer made my blood feel cold. The words I read had separated me from the reality of staring down a gun. When we arrived at the March For Our Lives that morning, I looked both ways down Pennsylvania Avenue, and could not see the ends of the crowd. The air was charged, but not with the fear I was expecting. Rather, it was a collective urgency and hope. Optimism, hope, and the promise of change. This was the attitude that emanated from every single sign and hand that was lifted to the sky. The March For Our Lives gave me faith in the promise of a new day. Often, my generation is ridiculed. We are self-centered, they say, self-entitled, impulsive. I choose to believe that we are fearless dreamers, who are empowered and more tolerant of each other, and the world. I believe the entire nation was shaken when they saw this side of our generation on March 24. Change will come, and I believe in that now more than ever.
Eliza Neeley: I loved having the opportunity to be in the nation’s capital surrounded by thousands of supporters in a movement led by young people. The young speakers were all affected by gun violence but were using their pain to instill change. I was also impressed by how the speakers addressed gun violence and gun control from diverse perspectives and with a wide variety of solutions. The March was representative, moving, and inspirational.
Amy Stanfield: One of the highlights of the trip for me was going to a park before the March started, to listen to students that were my age, a majority of them African-American, from a high school called the District of Columbia High School. They spoke about how gun violence personally affected them, their friends and their families. It felt very intimate and personal at the park. The March was absolutely incredible. It was an outstanding experience to be surrounded by 800,000 other like-minded individuals who were passionate about gun control. I really respected the focus of the March being directed on kids speaking rather than adults, as well as the focus on gun violence in African-American communities that happens daily and has gone unnoticed for many years. It’s time for change, and I feel very lucky to have been a part of a revolution that will most definitely be in history books in the future. In November we will remember!
