Students “March for Our Lives” in D.C

Demonstrators form the peace sign during the “March for Our Lives” rally in Washington, D.C. on March 24

By:Betsy Lizotte

Photos: Sumia Yusuf, Leena Raza 

Two Marymount students touched by gun violence marched to save lives, not to steal rights

Sophomore Leena Raza remembers the fear she felt during the Marymount live shooter scare of fall semester 2016.

“When we had that gun scare last year at Marymount, I remember feeling all this anxiety when I was hiding in a closet. The girl next to me was having a panic attack,” Raza said.

Marymount junior Sumia Yusuf had a galvanizing personal experience with gun violence when a close family member was shot and killed.

“My uncle’s wife’s sister was shot and killed when I was younger and that changed my perspective on guns,” Yusuf said.

Both Raza and Yusuf attended the Washington, D.C. “March for Our Lives” demonstration on March 24, 2018. The demonstration, which sought to decrease gun violence through a variety of means, was spearheaded by several high school students who survived the Feb. 14 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.

The mass shooting in Parkland left 17 students dead but brought to life a movement to end gun violence. Raza and Yusuf joined the shooting survivors and hundreds of thousands of other demonstrators to tell the government #NeverAgain.

According to the March for Our Lives website, the organization’s mission is to compel the government to require universal background checks and a searchable database at the ATF, fund gun violence research at the CDC, and ban high-capacity magazines and assault weapons.

Both Raza and Yusuf marched because they think that gun violence is one of the most important issues facing America.

“The gun control issue has affected so many lives,” Raza said. She has two sisters in elementary school who she wants to protect from both the danger she felt at the Marymount live shooter scare and what the Parkland students felt as they faced their armed assailant.

“It felt so real,” said Raza of the false alarm at Marymount. “I vividly remember texting my loved ones and asking them to forgive me if I had done anything to hurt them,” Raza said. “Because I thought I was going to die. Even though it turned out to be a false alarm, I was so scared. Can you imagine what all these students who were killed went through? They were involved in a real shooting, and if I was terrified during a false alarm, I can’t even imagine what the Parkland students went through.”

Sumia Yusuf (left) and Hajera Tania (right) hold up their
signs during the March for Our Lives demonstration in
Washington, D.C. on March 24

Yusuf agreed. “Gun violence is a huge issue in this country and I feel I need to help make a change. So I decided to go to the march.”

Although both students attended the demonstration, Raza and Yusuf marched in separate groups. Raza marched with her Muslim community.

“There’s a belief out there that Muslims are violent people, which is false. Islam is truly a peaceful religion, so we wanted to go out there and show that we are against gun violence as well,” she said.

Yusuf marched with her friend, Hajera Tania who is a junior at George Mason University.

One day before the rally, Congress passed a $1.3 trillion spending bill and Donald Trump signed it into law with two measures aimed at decreasing gun violence.

The bill encourages states and federal agencies to submit criminal-conviction records to the national background-check system. The bill also allows the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to study the cause of gun violence.

Both Raza and Yusuf feel that this is a good first step, but they want the government to do more.

“I think that’s a good start, but then again, tests should be administered and repeated on potential buyers to make sure they’re capable of owning and handling a gun responsibly,” Raza said.

“These are good steps that need to be taken; however they are small steps. This is a good start but something more needs to be done,” said Yusuf.

Raza thinks the U.S. can learn from Japan.

“The Japanese require potential owners to take a written test, a mental health test, and a drug test, along with a full background check,” she said.

In an Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation report on worldwide gun violence (not including armed conflict or suicide), Japan has only 0.04 gun deaths per 100,000, while the U.S. has 3.85.

Yusuf thinks it should be harder to get a gun than it currently is.

“I think there needs to be more background checks, a raised age limit, a psych evaluation and a complete ban on assault rifles,” she said.

The NRA fights any type of limit to the Second Amendment. The Second Amendment reads, “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”

The NRA website states that “gun control advocates use events like Parkland to push a message that you are to blame for the criminal violence that took place. They’re attempting to capitalize on this tragedy to convince members of Congress and your state lawmakers to vote for their gun control wish list.” The NRA urges members to contact their lawmakers today to fight any gun control efforts.

In response to the Second Amendment, Both Raza and Yusuf feel that it is outdated.

“I’m not a Politics major, but personally, I don’t think our Founding Fathers knew that in the future, people would be slaughtering each other with guns,” Raza said. “I think they meant that people have the right to bear Arms in the military only. Also, guns have changed since the 1700s. Alexander Hamilton probably didn’t think about gun technology advancing after muskets.”  

Yusuf has similar feelings.

“I think it is old fashioned and not relevant to our current society,” she said. “During the time the U.S. Constitution was signed, black people were seen as 3/5th of a person and now everyone is equal. That changed and the Second Amendment can change as well.”

Neither Raza nor Yusuf think that gun owners are bad people. The two Marymount students would like to have a more open dialogue with gun owners and gun-control opponents like the NRA.

“I don’t think gun owners are bad people,” Raza explained. “I am not saying all guns should be banned. I understand why people feel the need to keep a gun in their house for protection. Again, gun laws and regulations are the issue. And yes, I would be willing to discuss the issue with gun advocates.”

Yusuf is also willing to compromise with gun proponents.

“I don’t think gun owners are bad people at all I just think they need to realize that gun violence is a real issue in this country and stricter laws are the best way to prevent innocent people from dying,” she explained. “Since this is such a divided issue there will need to be compromise from both sides in order to make any real change. I do believe in listening to both sides of an issue and coming to a reasonable result that helps both people so I would be willing to discuss this with gun advocates.”

When both sides of the gun control debate do convene, the proceedings are often contentious. In a town hall meeting in Delaware on April 16, 2018, The Delaware State News reported that 2nd Amendment proponents yelled and booed at democrats who were proposing stricter gun control.

In light of the divisiveness of this issue, both Yusuf and Raza feel that it is important to speak out by voting during the upcoming midterm elections.

“I try to be hopeful that these laws will change, however I feel that the current people in office who won’t change gun laws need to be voted out and then the real progress can start,” Yusuf said.  

“I also plan to attend more marches and rallies if possible. That’s all I can do, along with writing to our legislators,” said Raza.