Protestors march to Jacksonville City Hall three weeks after racist triple-shooting
David Hogg has witnessed horror and hate firsthand, being a survivor of the shooting in Parkland that took the lives of 17 students and staff at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. On Saturday, he was one of many marching in solidarity, demanding change exactly three weeks after the racially motivated shooting that took the lives of Angela Carr, Anolt Laguerre, and Jerrald Gallion in a Jacksonville Dollar General.
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Hogg at Saturday’s protest said for him and the religious leaders who organized the march, enough is enough.
“The shooter at my high school had a history of racist remarks, xenophobic remarks, and hatred,” said Hogg. “We see this happen over and over again, this isn’t the 1960s anymore.”
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Saturday’s march marked a step away from that hate and racism, with event organizers also calling for a cease and desist to what they say has been a rhetoric of hate from Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.
“We have to say something about the policies that are impacting people’s lives,” said Reverend Arlinda Burks. “It’s not just about high school African American social studies. It’s about the truth of who we are.”
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The cease and desist was also read by students outside the governor’s office in Tallahassee on Friday, though his press secretary issued a statement calling the demonstration “a stunt.”
Nonetheless, the message continues to be told, with a call for action beyond the protest and a call to vote.
“The people that are thinking ‘well I don’t know if I’m going to vote this year’, those are the people that we really do need to vote more than anything,” added Hogg.
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