Survey: Most US Teens, Parents Worry About School Shootings
Survey finds one in four teens 'very worried' about shooting happening at school
Two months after the deadly shooting at high school in Parkland, Florida, a majority of American teens and their parents are worried about safety in schools, a new survey found. Fifty-seven percent of teens surveyed by the Pew Research Center said they were worried about the possibility of a shooting at their school. Most parents of teens shared that concern. The survey found one in four teens admitted being “very worried” while nearly 30 percent said they were “somewhat worried.” Only 13 percent they were not worried at all. Nonwhite teens expressed a higher level of concern than their white peers. Sixty-four percent of black and Hispanic teens said they were at least somewhat concerned, compared with 51 percent of white teens. Parents of teenagers expressed levels of concern similar to those of their children, with 63 percent saying they were worried about the possibility of deadly shootings at their children's schools. The survey was conducted in March and April after the February 14 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School that killed 17 people and injured more than a dozen others. The tragedy has spawned one of the largest ever youth-led movements against gun violence. On March 24, teenagers, led by survivors from Parkland, held a massive rally in Washington and most cities across the country and many around the world. Organizers estimated 800,000 people attended the March For Our Lives rally in the U.S. capital.