Stephen Colbert Praises the Young Survivors of the Parkland Shooting Demanding Action

The “Late Show” host delivered a powerful call to action for those seeking change.

On Tuesday, Stephen Colbert returned to the “Late Show” for the first time since last week’s school shooting in Parkland, Florida to praise the impassioned young survivors who have risen in the wake of the horrific tragedy to demand action from lawmakers.

“I hope these kids don’t give up because this is their lives and their futures,” he said. “Somebody else may be in power, but this country belongs to them.”

Looking to the unprecedented nature of the #MeToo movement, Colbert ended the somber segment with a message of hope and a call to action for the fast-approaching midterm elections. “A lot of men in power did not see that coming, but it proved that change can happen overnight,” he said. “And this is an election year. So if you want to see change, you have to go to the polls and tell the people who will not protect you that their time is up.”

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WE CAME UP SHORT.

We just wrapped up a shorter-than-normal, urgent-as-ever fundraising drive and we came up about $45,000 short of our $300,000 goal.

That means we're going to have upwards of $350,000, maybe more, to raise in online donations between now and June 30, when our fiscal year ends and we have to get to break-even. And even though there's zero cushion to miss the mark, we won't be all that in your face about our fundraising again until June.

So we urgently need this specific ask, what you're reading right now, to start bringing in more donations than it ever has. The reality, for these next few months and next few years, is that we have to start finding ways to grow our online supporter base in a big way—and we're optimistic we can keep making real headway by being real with you about this.

Because the bottom line: Corporations and powerful people with deep pockets will never sustain the type of journalism Mother Jones exists to do. The only investors who won’t let independent, investigative journalism down are the people who actually care about its future—you.

And we hope you might consider pitching in before moving on to whatever it is you're about to do next. We really need to see if we'll be able to raise more with this real estate on a daily basis than we have been, so we're hoping to see a promising start.

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