Hundreds of Columbus North High School students walked out of school Friday to protest gun violence, participating in a national protest.
The crowd, estimated at about 200 students, exited the front doors of the school and gathered at the flagpole, where five student speakers urged their classmates to use their voices and voting power to spur change.
“This is not a political issue, this is a school issue,” said Tristen Cook, a North freshman. “We shouldn’t be scared to go to school everyday.”
The school walkout coincided with a national walkout that marked the 19th anniversary of the school shootings at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, that resulted in 15 people being killed, including the two teen shooters.
A moment of silence was held that included the reading the names and ages of the 17 victims who were killed during the Feb. 14 school shooting in Parkland, Florida.
For more on this story, including walk-outs at other local schools, see Saturday’s Republic.
