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PS 11 Parents to Stage Walkout Wednesday During National Protest Against Gun Violence

P.S. 11 at 54-25 Skillman Ave. (Photo: Nathaly Pesantez)

March 12, 2018 By Nathaly Pesantez

Parents with children at PS 11 will stage a walkout this Wednesday, joining the thousands of national walkouts and events happening in the one-month anniversary of the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida.

The symbolic walk out at PS 11, located at 54-25 Skillman Ave., will take place at 10 a.m. on March 14, where parents will stand outside the school’s main entrance for 17 minutes to honor the 17 people who were killed in Parkland.

The walkout, first put forth by the Women’s March Youth Empower group, was brought to PS 11 by Amanda Keane Stack, a Woodside resident who has two children at the elementary school.

“My kids are 7,” Keane Stack said. “They’re too young to know about it and participate, but I wanted to be a part of this movement, and I wanted PS 11 to have nationwide representation.”

“It’s their generation facing this violence epidemic,” she added. “We decided we can walk out on their behalf.”

The school’s PTA supports the walkout as does the principal, Elizabeth Peña-Jorge, who has allowed teachers who have a free period during the walkout to join the event. Keane Stack says the walkout is open to all in the community, regardless if they are parents or have children at PS 11.

The mother of two stresses that the event is not for young children.

“At 4 years old they already have lockdown drills,” Keane Stack said. “I don’t think 5 to 7 year olds need to know there’s someone with an automatic weapon coming to hurt them.”

She added that the walkout is a way to do something other than sit on the sidelines and like posts on social media.

“One day [my children] are going to learn about Columbine and Newtown and Parkland,” Keane Stack said. “They’re going to ask me what I did about it, and I can’t say ‘nothing’.”

While there is no RSVP for the event, an ideal number of parents would be between 50 and 100, Keane Stack said.

The city has listed a couple of guidelines for students and parents for March 14, noting that middle and high school students who walk out and return will have been “cutting” class, and will not face consequences beyond a notation in their attendance record.

Elementary school students, however, need to be signed out by their parents or guardians, the DOE said. If they are not, they must remain inside the school.

In addition, the United Federation of Teachers, the union representing teachers, said plans for March 14 vary across schools, and are decided by the principals.

Over 2,500 walkouts have been organized nationwide, according to Empower. Several high schools in Queens are set to participate, including Cardozo High School in Bayside, which will see Queens Borough President Melinda Katz in attendance.

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31 Comments

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tootiestooters

Carbie Barbie has lots of free time to drink the Kool-aide and tell us how brilliant and caaaaaring she is.

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A.Bundy

curious about what this actually accomplishes. nothing but a shoulder shrug to political leaders is my guess.

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Carbie Barbie

Maybe. But you gotta be in it to win it. If it’s a first step… well, who knows? What’s the line about first they ignore you, then the fight you, then you win?

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George

What are the schools doing to kids to make them want to shoot them? Now you have the de Blasio 3k early brainwashing classes.

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Carbie Barbie

Yeah, clearly learning and schools are dangerous. George, can you please post an application for your home school?

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A Woodsider

Very proud of PS 11! School is responsible for teaching more than just reading and writing. It has also become the responsibility of the school to teach children to become productive, successful citizens. Unfortunately, school has to teach children compassion and respect because in some cases parents are NOT doing this in the home. In the past youth protest was seen in the civil rights movement and during the Viet Nam War. Lately, children are glued to their phones , computers and other electronic devises rather than interacting with others. They are “ME! ME! ME! They do not know how to handle differences of opinions, or conflict resolution. The walk out at PS 11 united PS 11 with children throughout the United States. I hope it will be the beginnings of a new movement, which will empower our youth in their future. Maybe, I hope, what these students are learning will change our world and make it a better place. 1000 children walked out of Stuyvesant they chanted”we have a voice”, we can create change! Unfortunately, the students at Boys & Girls High School walked to a near by deli and spent the time purchasing and eating snacks! Thank you 11’s PTA, Mrs. Pena-Jorge and Keane Stack! Thank you for making time and taking responsibility to make our world a better place!

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Sunnyside Truther

Since the Sunnyside Post thought it best not to post my comments earlier, lets try this again…
Today’s walkout was in fact set up by the Women’s March, a movement with close ties to the likes of Louis Farrakhan, the Anti-Semitic hate-group leader, the “Jihad against Trump” declaring Linda Sarsour, and Farrakhan’s dubious devotees, Carmen Perez and Tamika Mallory.
Farrakhan’s speech was, as it usually is, replete with anti-Semitic, homophobic, and transphobic invectives. When the news of Mallory’s presence at the event surfaced, she did not disavow Farrakhan’s comments.

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tootiestooters

STAY IN SCHOOL AND LEARN HOW TO READ AND WRITE! The principal should do her job which is not engaging in protests. #yourtaxdollarsatwork

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Carbie Barbie

The principal’s job is to educate, part of which is teaching kids civic engagement.

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tootiestooters

How would you feel if the kiddies walked out to protest gay marriage? Would you consider that “civic engagement’? No, I did not think so.

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Carbie Barbie

Yes, actually, I support their right to do so.

What you may not realize is that such a protest would be in opposition to the stated NYC DOE policies, which forbid discrimination based on sexual orientation. If the parents wish to exercise that option, they should by, all means, do so. They would, however, be subject to the DOE policy’s punishment, exactly as the kids who walked out are/will be on this issue.

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Carbie Barbie

Who said focused? I said learn about.

We could use a whole lot more civics lessons. Most Americans have very little idea of how their government works.

https://www.newsday.com/opinion/commentary/civics-education-need-1.15533129
A recent survey by the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania found that only one in four Americans can name all three branches of government. One in three can’t name any.

And while President Donald Trump retweets anti-Muslim videos of questionable veracity and muses that news outlets critical of him should be banned, 37 percent of Americans can’t name any of the rights protected by the First Amendment, the survey found. (Hint: These include freedom of religion and freedom of speech.)

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Anon.

Did you read the article? It was not the kids who walked out. It was for parents and community members.

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Sunnyside Truther

How about leaving school just for education and not for social activism. Why not plan something for a weekend when the kids would not have to miss any school, albeit 17 mins? How many JHS & HS students are just participating for the sake of walking out of school and *shockingly* not go back. Regardless, if parents want to do with their elementary school kids, then go for it so long as it’s not forced on those who do not want to participate.
One thing that’s conveniently left out here is that these walk outs are being organized by the Women’s March. Tamika Mallory, one of the leaders of the Women’s March also just recently met with the Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan. As per the New Yorker: “Farrakhan’s speech was, as it usually is, replete with anti-Semitic, homophobic, and transphobic invectives. When the news of Mallory’s presence at the event surfaced, she did not disavow Farrakhan’s comments.” https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/the-womens-march-louis-farrakhan-and-the-disease-of-american-political-life
Think about this before you decide to support this event.

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Springback

This is just a divisive way to disarm the American People so they’ll turn into sitting ducks for a tyrannical government. The biggest danger to People of any country is its government.

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Carbie Barbie

Your AR-Whatever is not now and will never be a match for any ‘tyrannical government.’ I’m afraid we’ve already lost that battle.

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Sunnysider

Proud for using their elementary age school kids as political pawns?

It’s actually pretty shameful, why are 5-11 year olds being confronted with dealing with mass murder? This is purely a coping mechanism for the parents, leave your innocent children out of this.

If they want to protest they should do it with full will and intent in High School

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Carbie Barbie

To state the obvious, they’re being confronted with the prospect of mass murder because they’re being confronted with the prospect of mass murder. Columbine, Sandyhook, (add the most recent here): _________

Rather than take potshots at parents who empathize, why not join them?

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tootiestooters

Because some of us don’t do things to “feel good”. We are not into the “feelings” part off it.

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Carbie Barbie

Which part are you into? All I can see right now is the dead children part. And I’m not really into that part.

Is there another part that I’m missing, aside from the antiquated, misinterpreted 2nd amendment part?

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Sunnysider

Wow that’s news to me! I had no idea the kids of PS 11 also went to Columbine and Sandy hook!

Because you know, they didn’t.

Little kids don’t watch the news, they are playing with their friends and scheming on how to get the next Lego set. By bringing up those incidents, you are bringing that BURDEN upon them in order for you to personally cope, which is extremely shameful.

There is absolutely no reason to even bring up these incidents, NONE.

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Carbie Barbie

Obviously they didn’t go to those schools. If you cannot
see how those incidents are connected to this, you’re
not paying attention.

Their parents have every right to discuss with their children, in a developmentally appropriate way, the issues that are emotionally affecting them. Particularly if by doing so they are helping to advocate for a safer environment in which to learn and grow. If the kids learn a little about how civic engagement works along the way, all the better.

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