Students and administration at Hershey High School have organized a peaceful protest against violence and school shootings, called Stand Up Against Violence Day, for Wednesday March 14, 2018.

March 14 marks one month after the shooting in Parkland, FL, where 17 students and teachers lost their lives because of gun violence.

Seniors Abby Shapiro and Lexie Corcoran are the main organizers of the walk-out and have worked with HHS administration to make this day possible.

Students will walk out at ten a.m. According to Shapiro, the plan is for students to walk out in the hallway and stay silent for 17 minutes in memory of the 17 victims in Parkland. In addition, this day is a school Spirit Day where students are encouraged to wear blue and orange.  

During lunches, those who wish to participate may go outside and tie red ribbons to spell out a message to represent our hope for a future without gun violence on the fences outside the track.

Ending violence and promoting safety in schools is a priority for many students in the school and people in the community. Both the Derry Township School District administration and the Derry Township Police Department are aware of the event, and there will be additional police officers on campus.

“We have been working hand in hand with the administration the whole time,” said Corcoran. “They are trying to make this a student-run event, but are still there to implement regulations to protect students.”

HHS Principal Jeff Smith worked extensively with Shapiro and Corcoran to ensure Stand Against Violence Day would be a safe and student-run event.  The students met with Smith four times to organize the event. Both Shapiro and Corcoran said Smith was a great help.

“I believe that looking back at recent events, it’s important to make people aware of gun violence and that even our community could be impacted. We want to take a stand to end violence and to honor those who have died; not just those in Parkland, but everywhere,” said Corcoran.

Shapiro agreed and said “[Standing up against violence] means to me that one of our top priorities as a school is to keep our students safe, and that we don’t want the violence to continue, especially in schools.”

Participation in the event is not mandatory.