x
Breaking News
More () »

Allegan students fire back at Sen. Schuitmaker, demand she cut ties with NRA

Students responded in a letter, demanding Schuitmaker apologize for her remarks and ask she cut all ties with the National Rifle Association.

Allegan County students fired back at a local lawmaker after comments she made in response to the national walkout.

On Wednesday, Allegan High School students, as well as Allegan Tech, walked out in solidarity with thousands of others Wednesday, March 14. Some of those students called lawmakers offices demanding change. That included the office of Republican State Senator Tonya Schiutmaker.

Schuitmaker responded to those calls in a statement to WZZM 13 telling them in part:

"I am greatly disappointed in the adults who are encouraging these demonstrations which are nothing more than a statement which solves nothing..."

On Thursday, those students responded to that claim in a letter, demanding Schuitmaker apologize for her remarks and ask she cut all ties with the National Rifle Association.

Schuitmaker's initial response to the walkout in full:

I am greatly disappointed in the adults who are encouraging these demonstrations which are nothing more than a statement which solves nothing. We need to follow the advice of Ryan Petty, father of one of the students killed in the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School last month. ‘Walk up’ rather than walk out. He said, ‘Walk up to the kid who sits alone at lunch and invite him to sit with your group; walk up to the kid who sits quietly in the corner of the room and sit next to her.’I call upon adults to do better and encourage students to interact with one another, care for their fellow classmates, and demonstrate compassion. Let’s focus on real solutions to real problems.” Sen. Tonya Schuitmaker (R – Lawton).

Students' response to statement:

As students who participated in a national walkout to demand an end to gun violence in schools, we are saddened by the response by Michigan Senator and Attorney General Candidate Tonya Schuitmaker. It reads, in part:

"I am greatly disappointed in the adults who are encouraging these demonstrations which are nothing more than a statement which solves nothing."

It is an administrator's duty to encourage positive outlets as they educate students, or the next generation. The walkouts at both Allegan High School and the Allegan Tech Center remained civil and were student-driven. We care about gun violence and school safety. We want our lawmakers to take note.

Attacking a peaceful protest gets nothing done. Senator Schuitmaker's statement is the epitome of a broken system. At first, we were shocked by the Senator's remarks. That shock wore off when we visited her website to learn she is a proud life member of the National Rifle Association and consistently receives an "A-rating" on their annual report card. Senator Schuitmaker's membership to the NRA is very concerning. We believe she should be ashamed to call herself a member. Today, we demand that Senator Schuitmaker cut all ties with the NRA and publicly apologize for her statements.

Lawmakers like Tonya Schuitmaker are not listening to us and they are "greatly disappointed" that we spoke up. Our response to the negatively charged comments is simple: We mean what we say, and we will take it to the polls in November. Please call the Senator's office at (517) 373-0793 and share your disappointment in her words.

Student Organizers from Allegan High School and the Allegan Tech Center

►Make it easy to keep up to date with more stories like this. Download the WZZM 13 app now.

Have a news tip? Email news@wzzm13.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter.

Before You Leave, Check This Out