Winston-Salem/Forsyth County high schoolers advocated for safe gun storage at a board of education meeting on Tuesday.
They’re part of a group called Students Demand Action, which is a national organization of young activists fighting gun violence. R.J. Reynolds and Reagan High School in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County each have their own Students Demand Action clubs.
About a dozen members attended the school board meeting, including Eva Jarvis who spoke about the need for safe gun storage during public comment.
“We may never eradicate the danger that guns will always present. But we can diminish the probability of the violence that they create,” she said. “A safe storage resolution is the first step of a long road, but a step that must be taken to make our schools much safer.”
Jarvis says the district has a duty to educate families about the importance of safely storing guns.
The students referenced the 2021 Mount Tabor High School shooting that resulted in the death of a student, and the self-inflicted shooting at Forsyth Technical Community College at the end of March.
Jarvis also commented on the district's new plan to increase random, unannounced use of metal detectors in high schools.
"I know that we've taken steps toward things like metal detectors, but I think it's important to also place an emphasis on taking action at the root of our problems," she said. "Rather than always sticking a Band-Aid over it, we have to also focus on what is causing these issues as well."
A new report from the North Carolina Child Fatality Task Force shows most guns used in youth suicide and school shootings come from home. Firearm death rates for children increased from 2019 to 2021 by 120%.
Amy Diaz covers education for WFDD in partnership with Report For America. You can follow her on Twitter at @amydiaze.