On Friday, the anniversary of the Columbine shooting, students across the country participated in a school walkout. KVCR's Ben Purper visited a school in Moreno Valley to find out what people were saying.
About a hundred students from local high schools walked off their schools’ campus for the anniversary of the Columbine shooting. They gathered in a grassy field in Moreno Valley College, where they met student organizers and representatives from the Inland Empire Community Action Coalition.
But it wasn’t exactly easy getting here. The students here came from three different high school in the area, and some school administrators were not on board with the walk-out.
Student organizer David Sepulveda says one school official tried to shut the whole thing down.
“She told us not to communicate with any students or staff and not to hand out any flyers,” he said.
Some students said they were afraid they might be punished or maybe even arrested for walking off their campus.
But the police officers gathered at the demonstration said they were only there to make sure there everything went smoothly.
Riverside Community College District Police Chief Rob Gunzel said there were no plans to interfere with the demonstration. “We’re here for the safety of the students. Our plan isn’t to have any kind of interference at all,” he said.
The walk-out featured speeches from organizers and a booth where students under 18 could register to vote.
