Parkland Survivor Emma Gonzalez Explains the Problem With Clear Backpacks
The shooting at Marjory Douglas Stoneman High School in Parkland, Florida reignited the gun control debate in this country. It also made activists out of several student survivors, thrusting them into the spotlight in the fight to keep our kids safe. One of the most outspoken students has been Emma Gonzalez. Her speech in the days following the shooting and during the March For Our Lives protest captured the country. These kids, KIDS, survived an unimaginable tragedy. And everyday since February 14, they’ve spoken up and out about gun control. States and politicians all over the country are listening, some more than others.
Last week, students at MSD began carrying mandatory clear backpacks on campus. Rather than address the real issues, officials in Florida and Parkland decided that clear backpacks were a good fix. It’s literally putting a bandaid on a bullet hole, and students are not happy about it. Emma took to Twitter to breakdown why this easy “fix” misses the point entirely, and does nothing to actually keep our kids safe at school.
In a series of tweets, Emma Gonzalez explains why the clear backpacks aren’t the change we want to see.
The people with the power to make changes keep making the wrong changes; no matter how much we tell them to listen to us there will always be a backpack manufacturer saying, "Hey they need clear backpacks, we got you covered,"…
— X González (@callmeX) April 3, 2018
…or a Barricade Renter saying "Hey do you need any extra fences that will create the illusion of safety but are easily jumpable and make all the students feel like a combination of prisoners and livestock?"…
— X González (@callmeX) April 3, 2018
…When people pay money for these modifications on our school (the only one in the county being altered btw) that means Someone Is Getting Paid and I am Sick and Tired of us being treated like prize pigs.
— X González (@callmeX) April 3, 2018
The point she makes is simple and devastating. Rather than address the real issue of gun control and mental health, people in power are looking for an easy fix. A way to make it look like they’re doing something, even if that something is completely ineffectual. And at the same time, wouldn’t you know, someone somewhere is making money off their pain.
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School is the only school in the county where kids are forced to carry clear backpacks. And they’re not taking it lying down.
https://twitter.com/cameron_kasky/status/981136553899626496
https://twitter.com/cameron_kasky/status/981145903162626049
Survivor Cameron Kasky makes a great point about the complete invasion of privacy the clear back packs represent for mainly female students. Imagine trying to get back some sense of normalcy after such a horrific experience, only to have your entire life on display every day at school. These kids aren’t the enemy, yet they’re the ones being punished.
Another student posted a picture of her clear backpack with a price tag that reads $1.05. That’s the amount a student’s life in Florida is worth, based on how much money Senator Marco Rubio has taken from the NRA. The backpack costs $10. Chilling.
https://twitter.com/LexiTracton/status/980914887072342016
We have to do better. For these kids, for our kids, for everyone. We MUST do better than this.
(Image: Twitter / @mia_moeller)
