Thought and Prayers not enough – Trigger Warning #ENOUGH (April 9, 2018)
By Sue Sitton
Since the Parkland school shooting on Valentine’s Day, young people are speaking out and have started a movement to demand gun safety legislation. They fearlessly challenge the NRA, which is more than many of our elected officials have done. Our kids are tired of the same old line of “thoughts and prayers.” Students from our own Township are at the center of this movement, using poetry to share the fears and frustrations of being the target for school shootings. We need to “Stand with our kids” and support them to stay energized to keep their movement going.
On March 24th, four talented students from Hinsdale Central High School performed their poem “Trigger Warning” at the March for Our Lives Chicago. Ellie Pena (freshman), Amani Mryan (junior), Kai Foster (senior), and Ayana Otokiti (junior) are members of the Poetry Club. They wrote and performed their poem “Trigger Warning” at the march.
After being posted on the Facebook page NowThisNews, their performance went viral (over 3.5 million views and counting). If for some reason you didn’t see it, take the time to watch and listen. Also, see The Doings – Burr Ridge article, “Hinsdale Central girls’ March for Our Lives poetry video goes viral”.
A few days before the march, Kai was a volunteer at the DGTDO office and shared that she was excited and honored to be able to be part of this important event. It is so great to see young people involved and in action on important issues. Let’s not take them for granted.