Parents of public school students should consider pulling their children out of school until the nation passes new restrictions on gun laws, former U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan tweeted Saturday.
Duncan, who has long argued that tighter gun restrictions would save children鈥檚 lives, was co-signing an idea, also floated on Twitter, from his one-time communications chief, Peter Cunningham. Cunningham now heads up Education Post, a K-12 advocacy and communications organization.
This is brilliant, and tragically necessary.
What if no children went to school until gun laws changed to keep them safe?
My family is all in if we can do this at scale.
Parents, will you please join us?鈥� Arne Duncan (@arneduncan)
He said in an interview with the .
鈥淚鈥檓 open to other ideas, I鈥檓 open to different ideas, but I鈥檓 not open to doing nothing,鈥� Duncan told the Post. 鈥淲e will see whether this gains traction, or something does, but we have to think radically.鈥�
At least a few folks on Twitter seconded the one-time education secretary. They included Wendy Kopp, the founder of Teach For America, a nonprofit that trains college graduates to work in needy schools.
We鈥檙e in.
鈥� Wendy Kopp (@wendykopp)
Count us in, Mr. Secretary.
鈥� David Weaver (@DavidWeaver)
My is in too! This is not about left or right, it鈥檚 about our children that keep dying because some adults are impeding progress. Together we can!
鈥� Efra铆n Mart铆nez (@EfraMart13)
I鈥檒l do it. My baby shouldn鈥檛 have to hold a sign like this ever again. She shouldn鈥檛 have a school shooter drill again. Tornado/fire only
鈥� Christine Mooneyhan (@roadmastersgirl)
Duncan, who was President Barack Obama鈥檚 first and longest-serving Cabinet secretary, is now a managing partner at the Emerson Collective, a policy and advocacy organization, where he works to promote gun safety.