ATLANTA - One day after tens of thousands of students walked out of metro Atlanta schools to protest gun violence, former Atlanta mayor and U.N. ambassador Andrew Young is inspired by their passion.
"They are about to continue Dr. King's work of redeeming the soul of America,” Young said, “because the suffering of those children won’t be in vein and their classmates are going to see to that."
As students now grab headlines with their demands for reforming school safety and the nation’s gun laws, Young see similarities between this movement and the civil rights movement.
Months were spent crafting the message behind the desegregation effort, and Young sees high school students putting in the same work.
"Their response has been measured, it has been rational, it has been disciplined and I think they're thinking about what they're doing," Young said.
Before Wednesday’s walkouts, Bernice King tweeted to students, “Walk out well. Be wise today. Don’t be provoked to violence. Stand firm for love and for legislation that serves to decrease gun violence.
On Thursday, her message to students has been to keep working, as they still have a long road ahead.
"What they're up against is monumental,” King said. “It is a giant. It is going to take some stick to it-ness, some longevity and guarding one's heart so they don't become discouraged, disgruntled because the resistance will be great."
King said the current generation that is standing up and demanding change when it comes to school safety and gun laws is a generation attracted to decentralized leadership.
King said there are perhaps specific students leading the movement who we haven’t seen yet, but having a designated leader, such as her father during the civil rights movement, could be a key to progress.
"I do think some form of a leadership protocol, even if you don't have one central face or voice, but determining which voice speaks to what, when, what area is going to be very critical," she said.
One Grady High School student said their work isn’t over, as they now need to focus on the weeks and months to come.
But Young believes walkouts and marches alone won’t be enough. Those who will soon be old enough to vote also need to speak up on election day.
"Legislators aren't responding,” one student said. “So the next step is well these people didn't respond to us so we don't need to respond to them next year in the election."
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