This article, in no way, is meant to undermine the will and determination of all those involved in the fight for an end to gun violence or to disregard the situation those in Parkland went through.

It has been over a month since the tragic event that occurred at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, but the name has not slipped from international headlines. This is due to the determination of the students from the school and their ability to rally students from across the nation to join in their fight to end gun violence. Some people have called into question whether they have gotten as far as they have due entirely to their determination or if their race and social class has something to do with it. A large majority of the students at Stoneman Douglas, or at least the students shown in the media, are white, middle to upper class students. Many people have stated that this has allowed them to get as far as they did. Although the original tweet calling out the Douglas students and their white privilege has been deleted, Kyra Parrow's, a Douglas student, response is still up.

It is refreshing that the students are acknowledging that they do have some privilege and that, if used properly, that privilege can help those who don't have the same privilege, but are fighting for the same things. Students from lower-income communities, like Chicago, might have the same drive and determination as those students in Parkland, but they won't necessarily have the funds or know-how on how to act on their wishes. Those students most likely won't be able to pay for buses to haul them to city hall or the White House.

The Parkland students are using the support they have gained to help raise the voices of any and all other students fighting the same fight, especially those from Chicago, a city that saw 3,457 shooting victims in 2017 alone. It is no surprise that the media tends to cover violence in dominantly white communities far more than they cover the same violence in dominantly black communities. The students of Parkland recognize this and one student, David Hogg, states "If this happened in a place of lower socioeconomic status, or a....black community, no matter how well those people spoke, I don’t think the media would cover it the same." The students of Parkland recently got together with student activists from Chicago to discuss what changes they want to see and how they want to go about making these changes.

Although some people refuse to believe that white privilege exists today, there is no denying that the Parkland students have gotten the coverage they have and have been able to make the change we see without a little help from their race and socioeconomic class. They understand this, and have decided to use their emphasized voice to draw attention to those that don't have the same privilege. This is how you use your privilege people.