1801 W Olive St, Milwaukee

CONTACT: Sophia Zhang
[email protected]

PRESS CONFERENCE
WHERE: 1801 W Olive St, Milwaukee, WI 53209
WHEN: 3:30 p.m. (MPS student Marvell Reed will be onsite at 3:20 p.m. 414-522-6875)
WHAT: student leaders will host a press conference on the sidewalk outside the high school

MILWAUKEE – As a group students have decided to invite all elected officials and candidates to their March For Our Lives – Milwaukee event. The March from Milwaukee County Courthouse on Saturday, March 24th, 10a.m. (www.marchforourlives.com) is an event of national mourning, where we celebrate the lives of the 17 people we have lost in Florida, and those who have died from gun violence. Students will acknowledge participating politicians, and they are welcome to help lead the march, to honor those lost. Formal invites are being mailed, and students are reaching out on email and with phone calls to
invite all Wisconsin officials that wish to attend. Tomorrow (Wednesday), students across Wisconsin will join in independent actions at 10a.m (https://www.womensmarch.com/empower/) titled “#ENOUGH: NATIONAL SCHOOL WALKOUT” which is an initiative of Women’s March Youth.

Tatiana Washington, Rufus King student, has this statement:
“The Parkland students have greatly inspired us. Our fellow students have not only inspired us to walk out on March 14th, but we have decided to do a week of action. We not only want to stand in solidarity with the Parkland students, but also show that we need stricter gun control laws. We need to put an end to gun violence: locally and nationally. Our school, Rufus King, is located in an area that has been congested with gun violence. We have lost fellow classmates, friends, and family to gun violence. We as students, as residents of Milwaukee are terrified, angry and have had enough. After Florida, we say NEVER AGAIN.

It is baffling to us that politicians believe gun control is not the problem. Here in Milwaukee, 80% of homicides involve guns. We hope by participating in these walkouts, and our march next Saturday, that politicians realize that we as future voters will not rest until this statistic drastically drops. Those of us who cannot vote today pledge to vote tomorrow. We will not let our politicians be bought by people that do not care about school safety. Our voices will be heard, and we will march unified next Saturday.

We also hope by participating in this walkout it shows we are lucky. We are lucky to have a supportive administration. We are lucky that we live in a country that gives us the right to assemble. We also want to show politicians and adults that we are the future. We are civically engaged and we will be voting. Those of us organizing these walkouts and this march, we do not want more partisanship; we are expressing our direct and dire concern with the state of our country and our city.”

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