Gun Proponent Shows Up at Palo Alto High School Walkout

A rally of hundreds for gun control at Palo Alto High School drew one dissenting student who stood near his truck decorated with a large American flag and a white flag with the slogan ”Come and Take it”. That slogan originated during the 1835 Texas Revolution, but is now usually used to protest government overreach and by gun-rights proponents in particular. The high school junior told a group of student journalists that he brought the flags to the March 14 rally to defend the Second Amendment.

In the Palo Alto school district, two elementary schools, both middle schools and both high schools, Palo Alto High School (Paly) and Gunn High School, held walkouts. Student speakers at Paly upended a trash can to create a raised podium and called for expanded background checks and a federal ban of assault weapons. The Raging Grannies provided amplification equipment and added their voices to chants that called out the NRA for being responsible for the mass murder of students in Parkland, Florida and elsewhere.

The Paly students were joined by young women from nearby Castilleja School for girls. According to the Palo Alto Weekly, the Castilleja and Palo Alto school district administrations said they did not sanction a walkout but supported the students' right to protest; at Palo Alto High students who missed tests or quizzes were allowed to retake them for full credit.