Students Across Levittown Area Take Part In National School Walkout

Students across Lower Bucks County and the country took part in the National School Walkout Wednesday morning.

At 10 a.m., thousands of students held moments of reflection at Bristol Borough Senior High School, Bucks County Technical High School, Neshaminy High School, Pennsbury High School, and Harry S. Truman High School. The events at the schools varied, but administrations did not discipline students for taking part.

Pennsbury senior Reed Markowitz, who helped organized the event at his high school, walked out with more than 1,000 of the high school’s 3,000 students. Escorted by administrators and watched over at a distance by police and school security, the students marched from the East and West campuses to the flag pole outside the natatorium.

Markowitz read the names of all 17 students and staff members killed last month in the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.

“No student should go to school in fear of being shot,” Markowitz said. “We need to push legislature to stop this from happening.”

The walkout at Truman was organized by the student government, according to Principal Lyndell Davis.

The kids at Truman wanted to keep the politics out of the demonstration and keep it wholly directed at remembering the students and faculty who lost their lives in Florida.

“My goal was to have the students realize how powerful a gun really is and how we can prevent school shootings. After all these innocent kids died, we need to make a change,” said Hailey Juba, a sophomore class officer at Truman.

“Many students were supportive of our goal and our event. A few friends made posters for the victims and showed their support by  wearing Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School’s school colors,” she added.

Students at the technical high school stood in silence as the names of the Parkland victims were named.

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Bristol Borough high schoolers took part in the walkout after a 9:30 a.m. assembly that dealt with the issue of violence in schools. Students and teachers exited the high school on Wilson Street and walked the perimeter of the school until 10:17 a.m. Police said they were on scene and watched over the walkout.

“The Bristol Borough Police applaud the students of Bristol Borough for participating in this event and hope their continued civic action helps to bring about change on this critical issue,” a statement from the department said.

Neshaminy high schoolers who contacted LevittownNow.com via email and text message said the majority of students who took part in their student-organized event sat down near the locker banks.

A video posted on social media shows two student leaders of the demonstration telling their peers to make their voices heard. The students asked fellow high schoolers to make their voices heard no matter their views.

“We challenge you to sign petitions … for whatever you believe that change may be,” one of the students announced.

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While the National School Walkout did have political undertones on the serious issue of gun violence and safety at schools, reporters from this news organization and students at the events said the 17 minutes students took Wednesday were not filled with overtly political messages as some parents had feared.

“I think it is a good thing to see students civically engaged,” Truman Principal Davis said.

“I think this is great. It is what school is all about,” said James Morgan, a member of the Bristol Township School Board.

“I have no issue with what they are doing at all as long as it is done peacefully and respectfully,” he added. “We support our students and our administrative staff.”

Photos from Truman:

Photos from Pennsbury:

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