Barack Obama joins Michelle in saluting kids protesting gun violence
Former President Barack Obama wants the students protesting for gun control to know how impressive they are.
On Wednesday, thousands of teenage students across the country walked out of classrooms in protest of the lax gun control laws in the wake of the horrific school shooting in Parkland, Florida last week.
And then on Thursday, Obama tweeted his support for these amazing, politically active young people.
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“Young people have helped lead all our great movements,” Obama wrote. “How inspiring to see it again in so many smart, fearless students standing up for their right to be safe; marching and organizing to remake the world as it should be. We’ve been waiting for you. And we’ve got your backs.”
Michelle Obama had also expressed her support for the students on Wednesday.
“I’m in total awe of the extraordinary students in Florida,” she tweeted. “Like every movement for progress in our history, gun reform will take unyielding courage and endurance. But @barackobama and I believe in you, we’re proud of you, and we’re behind you every step of the way.”
Kids are demanding change
Teens across the country are currently and survivors of the high school shooting that left 17 people dead are leading the charge to change America’s gun laws.
The suspect in that rampage, Nikolas Cruz, used an assault weapon to injure and kill teachers and students at his former high school. Now, young people across the country are say they are marching for their lives and demanding that lawmakers ban assault weapons like the AR-15 used by Cruz.
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On President’s Day, a group called Teens for Gun Reform had asked for 17 volunteers to lie down outside the White House for three minutes, the amount of time that Cruz spent shooting at students and teachers at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. But while they had originally asked for 17 people to represent the 17 people killed in the shooting, over a hundred people responded to the call for action.
“The two of us have organized this protest in solidarity with all of those who were affected by the tragic school shooting in Florida last week,” Eleanor Nuechterlein and Whitney Bowen, the teen organizers, said in a statement, according to CNN. “We call on our national and state legislatures to finally act responsibly and reduce the number of these tragic incidents. It’s essential that we all feel safe in our classrooms.”
Trump weighs in
On Tuesday, President Trump indicated that he wants to see so-called bump stocks banned. These devices are used to turn regular rifles into ones that fire much like automatic weapons.
The Las Vegas mass shooter used bump stocks and they played a role in why he was able to fire on so many people in such quick succession.
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“After the deadly shooting in Las Vegas, I directed the attorney general to clarify whether certain bump stock devices like the one used in Las Vegas are illegal under current law,” Trump stated, referring to Jeff Sessions.
Just a few moments ago, I signed a memorandum directing the attorney general to propose regulations to ban all devices that turn legal weapons into machine guns,” Trump went on to say from the White House.
“I expect that these critical regulations will be finalized very soon.”
Yesterday Trump and some of his other cabinet officials conducted a listening session with students, parents and gun reform activists.
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