On September 11th, 2025, a student at Herron High School (located in downtown Indianapolis) was detained for bringing a weapon to school. The school had gone in and out of “secure the building” lockdowns in inconsistent intervals from 11:00 AM until 1:00 PM.
Fortunately, no one was physically harmed. However, the student’s motives remain unknown. An email was sent at 1:00 PM ensuring that the IMPD had taken control of the situation, and that bearing a weapon on campus would result in an expulsion of 365 days.
One week ago, on September 5th, hundreds of Herron students participated in a walkout for Students Demand Action. This event protested the recent firearm deaths and injuries at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis caused by a 23-year-old shooter.
On the previous day, September 10th, three children were injured at Evergreen High School in Colorado. A right-wing activist, Charlie Kirk, was shot dead at the University of Utah within minutes of the aforementioned violence. Dozens of Herron students took to Instagram yesterday evening, reposting the quote “Gun Violence Spares No One” in response to these tragic events.
As students of Herron High School, the editors of Indy Underground want to share that we are tired. We have lived through nearly a decade of quarterly lockdown drills, facing numerous days where we have been forced to remain in our classroom for unknown reasons. We are disheartened to see our peers struggle through mental health crises without proper attention. We are frustrated that our state and federal representatives are not taking the actions necessary to prevent threats and attacks on our safety and ability to receive an education.
There is, and always has been, one common denominator to the issues we face: improper gun legislation. To see the foundational rights of happiness, security, and life taken from fellow students across the nation is deeply disconcerting. It is essential that the young people of America are placed above the demands of the various gun lobbies in our nation. The incidents today, yesterday, and over the past several decades clearly illustrate the need for stronger youth mental health supports, community trust building, and formal training/required safety measures for all firearm possession.
There have been 357 mass shootings (defined as a single outburst where four or more people were shot) this year; CNN reported forty-nine attacks in schools since the beginning of 2025. Many have labeled these shootings as an “epidemic” of gun violence. With an estimated 60 million more guns than people in our country, one may question why Americans are so fond of supporting the Second Amendment right to bear arms over the thousands of citizens being denied their most basic right: life. The Constitution was ratified in a time where guns were not able to shoot 45-60 rounds per minute. If we want to protect our future, it is time for a change.
