The latest nationwide protest was the March for Our Lives, led by the survivors of the shooting in Parkland, Florida as well as other activists around the country.
Spurring from this, as well as the rise of gun rights activism since the Parkland shooting, there has been criticism of the teenagers who are involved in activism.
These teenagers are facing harsh criticism because they have been elevated to a stage of idolization and celebrity status.
While we applaud celebrities who rise to the occasion and take part in these marches, celebrities are exposed to unfair criticisms more frequently and are used to it.
I believe we shouldn’t raise these teenagers to the level of celebrity because they are going to be continually subjected to the same treatment we give other members of the spotlight.
These kids are trying to change gun laws so that other teenagers don’t have to lose their classmates or possibly their own lives.
Faked stories circulated ranging from the idea the shooting was staged to the teenagers were crisis actors to a fake video of Parkland student Emma Gonzalez ripping the Constitution to shreds.
The first claim involved digging into the past of David Hoggs, one of the survivors, to say that he was a crisis actor and couldn’t remember his lines in the interviews after the shooting.
The latter fake story came from someone photoshopping the constitution over a target in a video where Emma and other survivors rip the target.
To make the situation more upsetting and uncomfortable, Colin Noir from NRATV went so far as to say “no one would know your names” if the shooting never happened. While this may be true, it’s insinuating that the students are capitalizing off of their “fame.”
Comments like this, as well as the spread of fake stories, are why I wish society wouldn’t give celebrity status to activists, especially since they are still children.
These teenagers are verified on Twitter, which may promote their message, but verification typically goes hand in hand with some sort of spotlight in media.
I commend these activists for what they’ve done to change the way the nation looks at gun rights. They are extremely brave to make sure their voices are heard while still being students.
I just wish that at the end of the day, the rest of the nation could remember that they are teenagers first, activists second.
