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Local schools participate in National Walkout Day

Posted at 4:00 PM, Mar 13, 2018
and last updated 2018-03-15 06:02:19-04

HAMPTON ROADS, Va. - Students across Hampton Roads participated and protested in Wednesday's National Walkout Day.

Participating students left their classrooms at 10 a.m. and stayed outside for 17 minutes.

Each minute is to honor a life that was lost in the Florida high school shooting that happened one month ago.

"There needs to be stricter gun laws especially against rifles and AK-47s and machine guns," says parent Jessica Fulgham.

Protesting for stricter gun laws is the purpose for the walkout.

Schools here throughout Hampton Roads have varying rules and regulations for students choosing to walk out. Mostly all of the local schools News 3 reached out to are staying neutral.

Some, like the Newport News City School District, say students will not be penalized because the district will honor the students' rights to protest.

Others like the Virginia Beach City School District say their students will be marked absent for any class time they will miss.

Some parents News 3 spoke with say they think it's important for students to exercise their rights. They also believe Wednesday's walkout will spark change.

"If they want to do something like this when they're in high school, I will definitely encourage my kids one day to voice their opinions," says Fulgham.

Related:

What you need to know about the national school walkout

Local public schools outline course of action in response to planned student walkout