By Lizmary Ortiz
Photos by Lizmary Ortiz & Michael Beaumont

“On February 14th, 2018, at approximately 2:30 PM in the afternoon at Stoneman Douglas High School [in Parkland Florida], 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz entered the school campus and conducted one of the deadliest school shootings in U.S history.”

This was the opening line from one of the passionate speeches given by Alanis Schwarzler during Rush’s walkout. High schools across the nation coordinated National School Walkout Day, a protest against the lack of gun control in America. The 17-minute walkout from 10:00 AM to 10:17 on Wednesday, March 18 was dedicated to the 17 students who lost their lives in Parkland, Florida.

The students at the Arts Academy at Benjamin Rush came out in solidarity in order to support this nationwide movement. Despite the wintry weather that had to be withstood, the students were engaged and vocal throughout the protest. They even prompted enthusiasm from passersby, as people in their cars honked their horns to show their support for the movement. The walkout was a memorable moment for all of the students at Rush, leaving everybody to walk away with a timeless message: We are the future.

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