Two local mothers and business owners are advocating to put metal detectors in area schools in response to the Sept. 4 shooting at Apalachee High School.
Founders of Moms 4 Metal Detectors Candice Williams and Rebekah Rico recently spoke on WDUN’s Mornings on Main Street to share the ways in which they are trying to make their goal a reality.
“We're not trying to oversimplify the problem,” Rico said. “We realize that school shootings are a very complex issue, both locally [and] nationally. We realize there's a parenting problem, there's a smartphone problem, there's an accountability problem, there's a teacher support problem, there's a fundamental family problem, and all of those things are contributing to what we're seeing happen in our schools. But if there is anything that we could do that would limit the likelihood that someone could enter the doors of our children's schools with a weapon, then we think we should do it.”
Williams, who practices family law in Gainesville, shared that the group has already reached out to area school systems and legislators to start a conversation.
“We have reached out to the city of Gainesville superintendent, also Hall County Board of Education,” Williams said. “ We have meetings in progress. We’ve also reached out to our local legislators, and trying to create that dialog,trying to create a cohesive community where we could all come together.”
Rico has three children attending Gainesville City Schools and Williams has a child in the Hall County School System. The two have mostly been spreading their message via social media, encouraging other residents to let their concerns be heard.
“Right now, we have almost 1500 followers on TikTok, over 500, I believe, on Facebook,” Williams said. “If you follow us, there's also a petition. Cast your vote and let the people know. Let our legislators know. Let our school boards know that we want metal detectors in schools for safer schools.”
The group uses the handle Moms4MetalDetectors on all social media platforms.
