Students in Putnam Participate in National Walkout
Students in Putnam County made a statement Wednesday morning when teenagers from all five school systems within the county participated in the ENOUGH National School Walkout.
At Carmel High School, about 200 students braved frigid weather to march outside to commemorate the 17 students and staff members that were killed last month at Stoneman Douglas High School in a tragic mass shooting. Many students held signs up calling for stricter gun control laws and urged lawmakers across the board to enact policies that would prevent mass shootings from ever happening again.
Carmel students left through the library exit of the high school and stood along the sidewalk facing Fair Street. Several cars passing by honked at students, showing approval with their actions.
Senior Anne Pozner, one of the Carmel students that organized and spoke, said the point of the walkout isn’t to miss class, but to demand safer schools.
“Because if it were up to us we would be focusing on passing math class, we wouldn’t be focused on fixing the problems of this country,” Pozner told her classmates.
While the majority of Carmel High School students outside joined together to participate in the walkout, a small group of apparent counter-protesters also stood outside. They held up a Gadsden Flag, which in recent years has been a symbol for conservative movements, including the Tea Party.
Although other school systems allowed students to protest, they didn’t allow members of the media to observe it. The Brewster and Mahopac school superintendents told The Putnam Examiner the walkout in their districts were closed to the press when an inquiry was made. The Haldane school system, in a letter to the community, made it clear no visitors were allowed on campus during the walkout.
Check the print edition of The Putnam Examiner for more photos and coverage next Tuesday.
