Students observe moments of silence for lives lost

By Chiupong Huang '23

Students gather in the ampitheater for a 6-minute moment of silence to honor the lives lost.

On the morning of April 13, W+H students Samina Aziz ‘24 and Shachee Kumar ‘24 brought the Upper School together to recognize the recent victims of the mass shootings in a Louisville, Kentucky bank and the Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee, as well as raise awareness to combat gun violence.

Permitting students to dress down in red or yellow for $2, Samina and Shachee raised nearly $200 for Students Demand Action, a national student-led advocacy group dedicated to demanding gun safety legislation and other solutions to gun violence. During their presentation in the Berry Performing Arts Center to the Upper School, they discussed the mass shootings in Kentucky and Tennessee which killed a combined 11 people with legally acquired weapons, as well as the need for gun control measures to dampen the growing prevalence of gun violence in the United States.

Following the presentation, the Upper School gathered in the courtyard for six minutes of silence to memorialize the six killed (Evelyn Dieckhaus, 9; Mike Hill, 61; William Kinney, 9; Katherine Koonce, 60; Cynthia Peak, 61; and Hallie Scruggs, 9) in the Covenant School shooting. Samina expressed satisfaction that the events led to a greater awareness of the human cost of gun violence among the Upper School community, particularly in the face of the numbing frequency of shootings. She added that: “The moment(s) of silence was meant for us as a school to reflect on the lives of other students and faculty that lost their lives to gun violence.”

With over 180 mass shootings having taken place in 2023, gun violence, especially the threat of it crossing into schools, is never far from the minds of most. Many students throughout W+H cannot recall a time when they did not know about school shootings. Luke Tan ‘24 said, “I know that there is a very real danger that someone carrying a gun could walk into a school and take the lives of innocent students and teachers.”

Looking to the future, Samina stated that she plans on continuing to work against gun violence at W+H through fundraisers and presentations: “Bringing recognition and educating our community about this problem can help stop gun violence.”