Wednesday morning, more than 1,000 Idaho students took over the steps at the state capitol in Boise. They were there to protest state and national gun laws after the deadly school shooting in Florida last month.
Boise High senior Kendra Borden says she wants to see more gun control laws enacted and says it’s necessary if the country wants to protect students. But the 18-year-old recognizes how difficult it will be for her generation to make policy change happen.
“I don’t know how hopeful to be, though, because I’m young and I’m very cognizant of that," Borden says. "But in talking with my peers and the people around me – I’m hopeful there’s [going to be] change.”
Borden walked with hundreds of her schoolmates to the Idaho statehouse, stopping traffic as they crossed busy streets in downtown Boise. The event was organized by People for Unity, the same group that put together Boise’s recent Women’s Marches.
Seventeen-year-old Meredith Covey says she’s protesting in part because school shootings like the one in Parkland, Florida have become normalized.
“I remember Sandy Hook – after Sandy Hook just being so shocked and sad and reading everything I could about it," says Covey. "But then in the shootings that followed I didn’t have that same reaction. It’s kind of something that I’m used to.”
Boise High senior Emily Hinton says the Parkland shooting felt personal.
“It feels like it could have been us," says Hinton. "It could have been our friends. It’s students like us who are losing their lives.”
Once at the statehouse, the students, along with other community members, gathered on the steps, held signs and chanted "Go away, NRA" while Idaho lawmakers worked inside.
Find reporter Frankie Barnhill on Twitter @FABarnhill
Copyright 2018 Boise State Public Radio
