Over one hundred high school students took their plight to the steps of the Capitol, protesting a bill that could arm their teachers with concealed guns. The Senate has already passed the bill, and the time is ticking as the House prepares to discuss and potentially vote on the contentious issue this week, as reported by WSMV4.

The rally, which saw students forfeiting class time to make their stand, was joined by several state lawmakers and gun control activists. Signage emblazoned with “Am I Next?” and “No Guns In Classrooms!” punctuated the gathering, with teen voices echoing a sentiment of persistence and escalation. “We’re definitely not going anywhere,” Trey Madison, a student from Martin Luther King Jr. High School told WSMV4, illuminating the ongoing struggle beyond a moment's emotion to the enduring significance attached to their lives.

But it was not just the youth who exuded concern. Among the protesters, parents of survivors from the Covenant School shooting last year lent their voices to the rising chorus of opposition. Melissa Alexander, a mother who asserts her son's survival to a teacher's in-class presence, begged the Republican-led House not to advance HB1202. “I’m certain my son is alive today because his teacher stayed in the classroom and kept him and his classmates safe,” Alexander stated in a press conference, details of which were highlighted by the Nashville Scene.

Criticisms reached a fervent pitch, as Mary Joyce, another parent of a Covenant survivor, characterized the bill to arm teachers as irresponsible, with her experiences resonating a stark impact. “We are sharing some very personal details about what our family has experienced and what we’re going through as a community, and it is frustrating sometimes not to feel heard — like we’re screaming underwater,” Joyce shared with Nashville Scene.

The sentiment among teachers is one of concern, as they fear the additional responsibilities and the potential for escalation rather than protection. The bill, dubbed HB1202, has been met with staunch opposition from educators as well, with teachers expressing their belief that arming them could lead to greater chaos in the event of a shooting. “On March 27, 2023, our teachers became heroes,” said Melissa Alexander, reiterating their crucial role during the Covenant School shooting as they kept children safe through lockdowns, as conveyed in the report by WPDE.

Now faced with a decision that could change the face of school safety and the role of education in Tennessee, lawmakers are under the microscope of the young community they serve, a community unwilling to back down or be drowned out in their plea for a future unmarred by the fear of guns in their place of learning.