[ One organizer said that if Tennessee lawmakers "actually cared
about protecting kids" they would "address what kills kids every
single day" instead of banning books and drag shows.]
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NASHVILLE STUDENTS RALLY FOR GUN CONTROL AHEAD OF APRIL 5 NATIONWIDE
WALKOUT  
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Brett Wilkins
April 3, 2023
Common Dreams [[link removed]]

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_ One organizer said that if Tennessee lawmakers "actually cared
about protecting kids" they would "address what kills kids every
single day" instead of banning books and drag shows. _

Nashville students protest outside the Tennessee State Capitol on
April 3, during a demonstration against gun violence, mobilized by the
youth group March for Our Lives., Marta W. Aldrich / Chalkbeat

 

A week after six people including three 9-year-old children were shot
dead
[[link removed]] in
a Nashville elementary school and two days before planned nationwide
protests, thousands of students walked out of classrooms across the
Tennesee capital on Monday to demand gun control laws.

The advocacy group March for Our Lives (MFOL)—founded after the 2018
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School massacre in Parkland,
Florida—organized Monday's protest to urge state lawmakers pass gun
control legislation including better background checks and a ban
assault weapons.

"The purpose of the rally is to show that the community has had enough
and we are demanding change from the Tennessee Legislature," MFOL
national organizer Ezri Tyler explained
[[link removed]] to _WKRN_.

"It's not drag queens. It's not books. Children are dying because of
guns."

"The message overall is we know that right now, Tennessee is engaging
in this culture war, where they're harming our communities by banning
drag, by banning books, banning gender-affirming care," Tyler added.
"But if they actually cared about protecting kids, as they claimed
they would address what kills every single day, which is guns."

Gun violence is the leading cause of death for U.S. children.

MFOL organizer Brynn Jones told
[[link removed]]_WKRN_ that
"it hits closer and closer, the longer and longer that you're, you
know, hearing these stories just being like that it's the same story
over and over again.

"But then hearing it on Monday that it was in Tennessee, it was in
Nashville, 20 minutes from where I grew up, 20 minutes from where I go
to school, hit incredibly close to home and felt personal in a way
that it usually doesn't," Jones added.

Thousands of students marched to Legislative Plaza near the Tennessee
State Capitol chanting "stop gun violence, we will not be silenced"
and other slogans. Video recorded inside the Capitol showed
demonstrators confronting state Rep. William Lamberth (R-44) and
asking him why lawmakers won't "ban assault rifles."

The LGBTQ+ advocacy group GLAAD tweeted
[[link removed]]: "It's not drag
queens. It's not books. Children are dying because of guns. GLAAD
stands with all of the students during today's walkout at the
Tennessee State Capitol. Ban assault weapons—not drag performers,
books, or lifesaving care for trans people."

However, Tennessee's Republican-controlled Legislature and GOP Gov.
Bill Lee have gone in the opposite direction.

As _The Associated Press_reports
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Already this year, Republican lawmakers have introduced bills that
would make it easier to arm teachers and allow college students to
carry weapons on campus. Democratic-led efforts to strengthen gun
safety measures have faltered. On Tuesday, lawmakers delayed taking up
any of the contentious gun-related bills, saying they wanted to offer
respect to the community.

The most significant movement involves the state’s permitless carry
law. In 2021, Lee led the charge to allow most adults 21 and older to
carry handguns without first obtaining a permit that requires clearing
a state background check and training. Thereafter, gun manufacturer
Smith & Wesson announced plans to relocate its headquarters to
Tennessee due to the state's "support for the 2nd Amendment."

Tennessee state Rep. Justin Jones (D-52) said
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three Democratic lawmakers were kicked off their committees and
threatened with expulsion for standing with their constituents and
demanding gun control legislation.

Monday's protest in Nashville came before another youth-led gun
control group, Students Demand Action, is set to lead nationwide
student walkouts on Wednesday.

"Being a student shouldn't be a death sentence but once again, gun
violence has forced its way into our schools, leaving nothing but
pain, trauma, and tragedy in its wake," the group said in a preview
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Wednesday's action. "We need more than thoughts and prayers. We demand
action from our lawmakers now."

Students Demand Action continued:

School shootings like this are not acts of nature—no other peer
nation allows students to be shot and killed in schools like this. And
it's not just gun violence in our schools. In America and in
Tennessee, guns are the number one killer of American youth, and
Tennessee lawmakers have done nothing but gut gun safety laws, putting
gun industry profits ahead of the safety of our children.

"We won't accept a country where gunfire can ring out at any moment,
whether it's while grocery shopping at a supermarket, hanging out at a
park in your community, attending a party, or going to a restaurant
for dinner," Students Demand Action added. "We deserve more."

_Brett Wilkins is a staff writer for Common Dreams._

* Gun Control
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* Student Protest
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* Nashville
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* Nationwide Strike
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