By Cassandra Sedler
Staff Writer

Last Wednesday, survivors of the shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School gathered in a town hall hosted by CNN in Florida.

Only a week following the horrific shooting that took the lives of 17 of their friends, peers and colleagues, thousands of survivors from the school fought for action on gun control.

It is sickening that some have the audacity to ridicule the young students for protesting, or believe the students speaking out are actors hired to push an anti-gun agenda.

Regardless of your position on gun control, these young adults should be commended for their immense bravery to speak out to instigate real change.

In addition, they should honor their friends who lost their lives to a senseless act that may have been prevented.

Despite their young age, the student survivors demonstrate more courage and leadership than some adults would have in the wake of such a tragedy.

Recent reports about the events leading up to and during the mass shooting reveal that an officer assigned to patrol the school remained outside while shots were being fired within the building.

Despite the possibility of being outnumbered, an officer is expected to rush into the area of a mass shooting, at the very least to provide a distraction to help others escape.

Deputy Scot Peterson neglected to enter the building for an agonizing four minutes, ignoring the sounds of bullets spraying through the school and victims screaming for help.

Peterson failed to enter the building, then quickly resigned after this information was leaked to the public.

Not only is the deputy facing questioning, but also two other officers face interrogations after they did not respond to warnings given to them about the shooter before the attack occurred.

Those hired to protect the school and its students failed to act in the most desperate time of need for a trained officer.

In addition, it was also revealed that the FBI received numerous tips that the shooter was a threat long before the time of the shooting.

The survivors of the school shooting have more than earned the right to be enraged at the absence of law officials, and trained professionals that resulted in the lives of their friends to be lost.

The survivors of the mass shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School display confidence and determination that far exceed their ages.

Their voices deserve to be heard by lawmakers and school officials.

Email Cassandra at:
csedler@live.esu.edu