Student survivors of the Florida school massacre anchored a massive rally against gun violence Saturday in Washington, D.C., while throngs of young people took to the streets in sister marches across the U.S. Some students also participated in counter protests in places like Helena, Montana, and Salt Lake City.
Here's a look at what some of the demonstrators had to say:
TALIA RUMSKY, 16
SCHOOL: Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida
MARCHED IN: Washington, D.C.
WHY? "Because we keep chanting, 'Never again,' 'Enough is enough,' 'Never again.' But it's already happened again. It happened in Maryland. There was a shooting in Napa (California). So I'm really here to make sure we can make our voices heard; so people are empowered to make sure we vote in legislators so this doesn't happen again; so we can avenge those who were stolen from us because someone thought it was OK to own weapons of mass destruction."
WHAT DO YOU WANT TO SEE CHANGE AS A RESULT? "I definitely want people to vote in new legislators that will help us pass bills that will include banning high-capacity magazines, banning certain semi and automatic assault rifles — and not just focusing on school safety but focusing in on gun violence as a whole."
GRACE BENDER, 17
SCHOOL: Capital High School in Helena, Montana
MARCHED IN: Helena, Montana
WHY? "My family are all gun owners, and I've been around guns my whole life. And I think that it's absolutely necessary for people who own guns who are responsible gun owners to also be advocating for this because I don't think there are two sides. I think that if you want to find solutions, you can do that really easily."
WHAT DO YOU WANT TO SEE CHANGE AS A RESULT? "I don't want to wake up to another headline that says 20 kids died in a school shooting. I don't want people like the Parkland shooter to be able to get access to guns like he did. I just want to feel safe in schools. I don't want to have to keep doing shooter drills."
ADRIAN MAYAN, 13
SCHOOL: Sacred Heart Academy in Redlands, California
MARCHED IN: Los Angeles
WHY? "I'm here to represent the people who died in the several shootings that happened recently, and I'm here to represent those who can't be here and to make changes in the government."
WHAT DO YOU WANT TO SEE CHANGE AS A RESULT? "I hope many government officials are able to open their eyes to change gun laws in this country."
ZOE BONNER, 16
SCHOOL: Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida
MARCHED IN: Washington, D.C.
WHY? "I'm here today because it happened to our school, and it shouldn't have happened. It shouldn't have happened anywhere, and we feel like it's time to make change and get gun reform."
