Page 6 - ARUBA TODAY

A6 U.S. NEWS
Wednesday 30 May 2018

Gun-reform activists spur voter registration at high schools

By WILFREDO LEE and KELLI voter-registration drive in
KENNEDY her school’s cafeteria on
Associated Press May 17, but school adminis-
PARKLAND, Fla. (AP) — Stu- trators said it was too close
dents at more than 1,000 to the end of the year. She
schools across the country helped about 33 young
are registering young vot- people register in her town
ers in lunchrooms, hallways square, more than half of
and even at upcoming whom were under the age
graduation ceremonies in of 25.
a week of activism aimed “We know the only way to
at electing lawmakers who get real change is to vote
support gun reforms in re- and check a ballot box
sponse to school shootings and to get the right people
in Florida and Texas. in. ... It’s just time to vote
David Hogg, a senior at these people out that don’t
Marjory Stoneman Doug- really care if we’re getting
las High School in Park- killed in school or not.”
land, is spearheading the Grace Goldstein, a
national effort along with 16-year-old sophomore at
the New York-based orga- Stuyvesant High School in
nization HeadCount. Hogg New York City, saw Hogg’s
and organization officials tweet about hosting the
say students at more than drives and immediately re-
1,000 schools in 46 states sponded. She said she felt
are participating, with most an instant connection with
starting their drives Tues- the Parkland teens: She
day. Their goal is to have was locked down inside
90 percent of the nation’s her school on Halloween of
high schools host drives David Hogg, a senior at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, poses for a photo at Pine Trails 2017 when a terrorist drove
before the current senior Park, Tuesday, May 29, 2018, in Parkland, Fla. a pickup truck down a
class graduates in hopes of Associated Press crowded bike path along
boosting young-voter turn- including universal back- ing that claimed 17 lives. of those rare societal prob- the Hudson River in Man-
out, which is traditionally ground checks and training On Tuesday, Douglas High lems that can be fixed pret- hattan, killing eight people
low, especially during mid- for people who own AR-15s Principal Ty Thompson ty easily. If some schools al- and injuring 11 before be-
term elections. and similar semi-automatic tweeted a photo with a ready do a great job help- ing shot by police.
HeadCount, a national or- rifles. “We need to vote big, gold trophy congratu- ing students register, there’s Goldstein formed the activ-
ganization that has regis- people out of office that lating them for registering no reason all schools can’t ist group Stuyvesant Says
tered nearly half a million are perpetuating issues af- more students than any do the same.” Enough, which has orga-
voters since 2004, mostly fecting young people like other school in Broward Nurah Abdulhaqq, a nized walkouts and rallies
at concerts and music fes- gun violence. ... The youth County. 14-year-old at Chapel Hill that have for the most part
tivals, also hosted voter don’t vote lawmakers into Roughly 43 percent of High School in Douglasville, gotten a strong response
tables at the March For Our office and as a result they 18-year-olds in the United Georgia, has been an ad- from students. Still, she
Lives gun-reform rally orga- don’t work for them,” he States were registered vocate for gun reform since worries “that student apa-
nized by Hogg and other said. Student organizers to vote in 2016, but only 2016, when her cousin was thy is a very, very danger-
Parkland students in Wash- are trying to reach teens in 34 percent voted in that gunned down in her small ous thing” and something
ington, D.C., that drew spots they frequent, includ- year’s presidential elec- town. The teen hosted a she’s already observing as
hundreds of thousands of ing coffee shops and at tion, HeadCount represen- town hall with lawmakers school shootings fade from
young people in March. school assemblies, where tatives say, citing statistics in April to discuss the issue, news headlines.
Voter-registration drives they say it takes less than from the U.S. Census Bu- saying she broke down af- “Some of my best friends
were the logical next step two minutes to register reau. Turnout for congres- ter watching the Parkland were saying (of the rallies),
after months of rallies and them. There was little ac- sional and local elections is shooting on the news. ‘You know it’s not going to
schools walkouts, the activ- tivity at the voting booth even lower. “It was kind of shocking to do anything.’ ... They didn’t
ists said. at Douglas High School on “There’s an inequality in the me, and the fact that this think it would matter or
Hogg says all the rhetoric Tuesday because the ma- education system when has happened time and make a difference.”
on gun reform is worthless jority of eligible students some schools have very or- time again in this country Goldstein says she views
unless voters oust lawmak- have already registered, ganized voter-registration and nothing’s changed. the walkouts and rallies “as
ers who are beholden to Hogg said. The students efforts and others have There’s been no stronger kind of a warning almost,”
the National Rifle Asso- have held three other voter nothing,” said HeadCount gun-control laws passed,” but that “voting is where
ciation. The students want drives in the months after executive director Andy she said. we can make a tangible
tighter regulations on guns, the Valentine’s Day shoot- Bernstein. “But this is one Nurah planned to hold a difference.”q