2 Fifth Graders Organized an Elementary School's Walkout, and What They Did Will Give You Chills

Students around the nation have been talking for weeks now about kids participating in the Enough! National School Walkout to peacefully protest for stricter gun laws, and on March 14, thousands of students across the US held walkouts at 10 a.m. local time for 17 minutes — one minute for each victim of the Parkland, FL, shooting on Feb. 14. Fifth-graders at George Mason Elementary School in Alexandria, VA, organized and participated in their school's walkout this morning, and though many of these events likely looked very similar, there's something eerie about this one that will bring you to tears: the 10- and 11-year-old students stayed 100 percent silent.

In a chills-inducing video taken by a member of the local newspaper, The Zebra Press, the person filming walks down the line of students, many of whom are holding up signs with anti-gun-violence phrases and shooting victims' names. "George Mason Elementary School Walkout," reads the video's caption. "VERY EMOTIONAL . . . completely silent."

About a minute and a half into the three-minute video, it appears that it may be over, as the camera points to the ground and goes in a few circles as the videographer walks around, but at this point, the most heartbreaking moment of the walkout has yet to come. As the camera angles itself back toward the children, one by one, each child gets on the ground and lies on the grass. The camera pans from the kids to their teachers and parents standing on the sidewalk, all visibly emotional and many tearing up.

Lois Beckett of The Guardian tweeted about the students of George Mason Elementary after she spoke to 11-year-olds Naomi and Carter, the two fifth-grade students who co-organized the school's walkout.

"Some parents have felt that we're not old enough to know about it," Carter told Beckett. "They think because we're fifth graders we don't know anything about what's happening."

The kids also prepared a press packet for Beckett, further proving that they're more in the know than most people give them credit for:

This eerie and heartbreaking video makes it clear that these kids certainly do know and understand what's happening, and considering that school shootings have taken place in elementary schools more than once, unfortunately, these young students are just as worthy of being as in-the-know as possible, despite their ages. If you want to talk with your child about gun violence and what they can do to raise their small yet powerful voices on the subject, check out these tips on creating a dialogue with them.