ST. PAUL, Minn. — Students across Minnesota staged walkouts Friday to demand legislative action on gun control following the Aug. 27 shooting at Annunciation Catholic School that killed two and wounded 21 others.

High schoolers from St. Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists took part in the walkout, leaving class Friday afternoon to gather with signs that read “Ban guns, not education” and “Am I next?”

“I feel like, enough has been enough. And I feel like I’m in a spot where I can use my voice and I’m allowed to and that I have the privilege of getting up and organizing an event like this,” said Mason Yang, 17, of Maplewood.

The group held a moment of silence before making its way to the Capitol.

Thirty-seven schools in the state were expected to participate in the walkout, in addition to walkouts in other parts of the country, according to Everytown for Gun Safety. The walkouts were part of a coordinated effort to demand bans on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. They are organized by Students Demand Action groups, a grassroots arm of Everytown for Gun Safety.

Other St. Paul schools with students participating in the walkouts included Central and Highland Park high schools.

“I think a lot of us are just fed up with the way that things are being handled, and we want change and we want it now,” said Lexi Anderson, 16, of St. Paul.

Search warrant documents show that the high-powered rifle used in the shooting at the Church of Annunciation was a semiautomatic, according to The Associated Press. Police chief Brian O’Hara told reporters last week that the shooter used the 5.56 mm rifle to fire 116 rounds in under four minutes.

Also on Friday, a coalition of faith leaders and advocates held a press conference at the Capitol to call for an immediate legislative special session to ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. The event was held in partnership with Moms Demand Action, and students gathered inside the Capitol building to listen to speakers.

“I think it particularly hit close to home, because it was so close to home. This is a long time coming,” said Pharaoh Jones, 17.

Gov. Tim Walz has said he plans to call a special session to address gun policy. Walz and Democratic-Farmer-Labor lawmakers want new restrictions on firearms, but passing bills banning certain semiautomatic rifles and limiting the capacity of magazines would require Republican support.

Mass shootings where an assault weapon was used have resulted in nearly six times as many people shot and more than twice as many killed compared to those that did not involve one, according to Everytown for Gun Safety.

Amber Lee, 17, of St. Paul, said change is long overdue. Lee, who identifies as a trans female, also said the backlash against the trans community following the shooting is ignorant.

“One person’s action cannot define a whole community,” Lee said. “And I think that trans people are already under attack every day, and so they’re using this almost as fuel to continue their bigotry and continue the hate. I think this is trying to stop them.”

Victoria Mitchell, 14, said parents deserve to send their children to school without the fear that they could be shot. She said she knows one child who was at Annunciation who is now too afraid to leave the house and another family considering moving back out of the country.

“I guess I’m taking part in this walkout because I have seen the pain and the suffering of kids that have been impacted by gun violence,” Mitchell said.

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