Nineteen years. That is how long it has been since 13 people were murdered at Columbine High School by the hands of Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris in Littleton, Colorado.

Families mourned, students grieved for their peers and the nation was moved to action as thousands protested the National Rifle Association in Denver on May 1, 1999. We saw the public transition from sadness to anger as we struggled to find out both why this happened and how we could prevent it. There was hope that this would lead to real change in the system and that we would no longer have to see any more students die.

Unfortunately, over the following two decades we would see 85 more school shootings and 223 more people die. That is not even counting the numerous other shootings that are not school-related such as the ones committed by James Holmes, Steven Paddock and Omar Mateen, among a number of others.

In fact, according to Nikki Graf of Pew Research Center, 57 percent of teenagers are concerned that there could be an attack at their school. An atmosphere of fear has now encompassed the very institutions dedicated to uplifting us through education and understanding. It is crazy to think that both students and parents are afraid that one horrific day at school could possibly lead to them never seeing each other again.

The urgency on this matter is such that Gov. Roy Cooper wants to allocate $130 million in funds to bolster school safety from grade school to the university level rather than waiting for Congress to act.

Enough is enough. Americans are tired of the hollow “thoughts and prayers” that are consistently echoed following one tragedy after another.  In the wake of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School terrorist attack, we see that citizens are tired of asking for change and are now demanding it after the deaths of 17 people.

Since this latest shooting, there have been hundreds of protests on both a national and international level. This is something that is unlikely to change, and the public will not allow for any more excuses from our nation’s leaders. Students have been leading the charge for change to save their own lives and that is no less true of your peers here at NC State.

On the anniversary of the Columbine incursion, NC State students participated in a walkout to show solidarity with various others occurring all around the country to remember the victims and support gun reform. They sat in the Court of North Carolina for an hour holding various signs and engaging with other students to discuss their stance during the protest.

Marjory Stoneman Douglas alumna and current NC State sociology Ph.D. student Marie Gualtieri took part in the demonstration to express a need for progress with gun reform.

“The ‘Never Again’ movement is not about taking away people’s guns. It is just to make common sense gun laws like they do in other countries. No civilian needs an assault rifle or a weapon of war in their hands,” Gualtieri said.

Seeing her former school ravaged by so much unnecessary bloodshed has really struck a chord, and she wants to see student lives prioritized over weapons.

“We also do not want ‘bump stocks’ to be available anymore because of what they can do to weapons to make them automatic, we want to raise the age from 18 to 21 to secure firearms and we want better background checks,” Gualtieri said. “We know that there will be compromise and we are up for compromise but we just want a conversation.”

Gualtieri was not the only one calling for compromise though, as fellow protestor Heather Schriefer, a third-year studying environmental science, believes that a common middle ground is crucial to a real resolution.

“I think it would be really nice just to see more of an education push between both sides and more of a willingness to listen and not just talk at each other,” Schriefer said. “I think it would be really cool to see how many people have concealed carry permits, how many people have actually needed it, and why they feel that they need it. If people do not feel safe where they live, then I think that is a problem.” These statements from our peers counteract the perception that the “anti-gun” crowd is actually anti-gun.

What they do stand for — myself included as a concealed carry license holder — is a conversation where we can actually move forward in a positive and productive manner. We cannot allow others to dictate the conversation, or change the narrative, about what needs to be done here. We all want the safety of our fellow Americans to be of the greatest importance.

However, one side cannot can change gun laws alone and the other cannot protect their rights alone. It will take a combined effort — and open minds and ears — in order to help us all come together as one pack. This cannot simply devolve into one side winning and one side losing but rather all of us caring about what happens next in our schools, streets and cities. It is time to stop putting our pride above the lives of our citizens.