Texas State students organized an anti-gun violence protest March 22 as part of a nation-wide movement to end gun violence.
TXST #NeverAgain School Walkout brought students and other San Marcos community members to the Fighting Stallions around 10 a.m. in preparation to take the protest to the Hays County Courthouse on the San Marcos square. The crowd grew as students walked out of their Friday morning classes. Protestors chanted “Never again” and “we want change” for about 40 minutes while the crowd prepared to march.
Protestors began marching from the Fighting Stallions to the San Marcos Square around 10:45 a.m. as onlookers on the Quad, in residence halls and along North LBJ Drive witnessed the large group of protestors making its way off campus. Some onlookers joined the crowed as it passed.
Ana Puig, musical theater sophomore and protest organizer, is passionate about spreading awareness about gun-violence.
“We are marching today in honor of the Parkland victims and all the lives lost to gun violence in our communities and our schools” Puig said. “We wanted to bring awareness to the detriments of gun violence in our communities as well.”
Puig encouraged protestors to vote and to keep the national dialogue about these issues going on social media.
Brian Corkum, musical theater senior and protest organizer, was inspired to show support after the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting Feb. 14 in Parkland, Florida.
“A lot of the musical theater majors got together and decided how we could show our support and we decided on a walk out and march to the Hays County courthouse” Corkum said. “We thought that would be the best show of our support.”
TXST #NeverAgain School Walkout occurred less than a week after the Maryland school shooting, at almost the same time as the Wimberley High School walk out and the day before the March For Our Lives protest in Austin. Each of these events have added to the national dialogue on gun-violence through media coverage and social media activity, which is something Corkum wanted Friday morning’s protest in San Marcos to do.
TXST #NeverAgain School Walkout had a small number of observers who disagreed with the protest.
Robert Kansas, computer information systems junior, thought the protestors did not propose real changes and had little faith in the protest.
“I don’t think this is going to do anything” Kansas said. “I’m not saying it’s good that those kids got shot in Parkland or San Bernardino or the people in Vegas but we actually have to propose something.”
TXST #NeverAgain School Walkout concluded with a poem read by Jorrel Javier, musical theater senior, and a song that was sang in chorus by many of the musical theater protestors. The large crowd stood in front of the Hays County courthouse in solidarity for one another and the many others impacted by gun violence in schools around the country.