By Anusha Trivedi '23

On Tuesday, March 22, Notre Dame’s March For Our Lives group organized a school-wide walkout in protest of gun violence. At 2:00 pm, all students and faculty were invited to gather in a large circle in Pardini Park. After reading out the names of the 17 victims of the 2018 school shooting in Parkland, Florida, attendees stood in silence for 17 minutes to honor them. Afterward, students gave speeches and led chants in support of this movement. Aparna Prabhakar ‘23 presented a powerful poem she wrote, Aly Francisco ‘23 sang a moving song with relevant themes, Emely Garate ‘24 delivered an empowering speech, and Ambika Ramadurai ‘23 also shared her experiences with this social justice issue. 

March For Our Lives is a youth-led movement and registered non-profit that has just created a chapter in San Jose at Notre Dame. This group, led by Ramadurai, Garate, and Parnika Chaturvedi ‘24, have been planning for this walkout for several weeks, hoping to inspire Notre Dame students to take action. The Thursday before this event, students gathered in the Student Life Center courtyard to help create posters and signs to hold during the event. Students were also encouraged to wear orange to show their support, as orange is the color associated with the anti-gun violence movement. Throughout this event, Notre Dame students and faculty demonstrated their commitment to social justice and their solidarity for those who have suffered from gun violence.

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