Students fighting against gun violence in a 'constant state of fear'
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Two Portland Public Schools students have collected hundreds of signatures in hopes of making a change with issues surrounding gun violence. Now they're taking the fight to the school board.
The two students brought several demands, some at the district level and others at the legislative level, hoping to gain support for changing safety standards at Oregon's largest school district.
Both students really want things like trauma-informed practices being done during lockdowns and drills, better overall school safety and mental health support. Some board members spoke in support of these ideas after the students gave their speeches.
"We're always kind of in a constant state of fear for our safety," said Naomi Basaca, an eighth grader at Laurelhurst School.
She and Jorge Sanchez-Bautista, a high school senior at McDaniel High School, have partnered with the Oregon Alliance for Gun Safety to collect more than 300 student signatures for their petition.
"We've seen a lot of, like, school violence and school shootings. And just like, you know, a lot of things related to guns and, you know, in our communities and in our schools," Sanchez said.
The five demands listed in the petition include supporting students with trauma-informed practices during lockdowns and drills, increasing mental health support for students, implementing place-based improvements to enhance school safety, raising the minimum age of purchasing long guns to 21 in Oregon and requiring schools to distribute information on secure gun storage.
"I've seen my classmates cry and panic during active shooter drills and I just think it's just so crazy how big of an issue gun violence is and how, like, unfazed adults are about it. And I just wanted to do something about it," Basaca said.
During Tuesday night's Portland Public Schools Board Meeting, both students brought their concerns to the table. Sanchez cited several instance of violence in and around the schools in recent years, specifically a drive-by shooting near Jefferson High School where two students were hit by stray bullets.
"This is becoming so common not just here but nationally and we see shootings on the news and we're not even sad about it. We're just like, we need to do something," Sanchez said.
Some Portland Public School Board members even responded after the students talked, not a typical practice during a student comment session.
"I want to make sure that we go on record saying that we know, even if he didn't say it, that we know there are a lot more shootings happening in a one-mile radius of our schools than we'd like to talk about. And a mile is too close," said Portland Public Schools Board Member Herman Green.
"As board members, it's on you to make these changes," Basaca said.
After the meeting, the two students said they look forward to hearing more from the district. While no decisions have been made, they said they were happy to get the conversation started.