Teen urges action after Covenant shooting: 'Why is it on the children to beg not to be shot?'

When Lochlan Cook goes into a classroom for the first time, he quickly decides whether running or hiding is the best option if a shooter attacks.

"I have never lived in a world in which this was not a threat," Cook, who is 16, said in a speech ahead of Nashville Mayor John Cooper's State of Metro address Thursday. "This doesn't need to be our reality."

The speech marked exactly one month since a shooter killed three children and three adult staff members at the Covenant School in Nashville. Cook, who is the Nashville Youth Poet Laureate and a finalist for the Tennessee Youth Poet Laureate, also spoke about navigating life as a transgender teen and a Christian.

He challenged those who condemn transgender people and resist gun reform to consider God's commandment to love your neighbor.

"Bulletproof backpacks are sold in the back-to-school section and you can't see what guns are doing to our country," Cook said. "You are so afraid of all the wrong things. You cannot see the suffering in front of you ... I am your neighbor, and all I'm asking is to be safe."

Cook ended his address with a plea.

"Keep us safe. Keep us safe. Keep us safe. Am I next? Am I next. Am I next?" Cook said. "Why is it on the children to beg not to be shot?"

Cooper touts boosted teacher pay, benefits; praises first responders

Vice Mayor Jim Shulman later took the podium and praised Cook's speech and invited him to the next Metro Council meeting. He also marked the somber occasion of the one-month anniversary of the Covenant School shooting.

"We will never forget that day," Shulman said. "We will never forget those taken from us."

He recapped the enormity of the events of the last month ― including multiple protests and the expulsion and reinstatement of Reps. Justin Jones, D-Nashville, and Justin Pearson, D-Memphis ― before introducing Cooper.

State of Metro: Cooper proposes $100M more for schools, boosts for public safety

Cooper's address highlighted several of his accomplishments in his four-year run as mayor, including boosting pay for teachers and bus drivers, and creating family leave for teachers. He also invited several of the first responders during the Covenant shooting to stand. They were met with a thunderous standing ovation.

"On our darkest day, your courage shone through," Cooper said. "Your courage inspires us. You are our heroes."

Cooper, who will not run for re-election, also gave a glimpse into his 2023 budget proposal, which includes an additional $100 million for Nashville schools. It also includes funding for a program to mail free gun locks to Nashville residents. A similar program exists in Shelby County.

Cooper's budget proposal will be presented to the Metro Council next week and kick off several weeks of consideration, before a final vote by the end of June.

Cassandra Stephenson contributed to this story.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Nashville teen pleads for action 1 month after Covenant shooting