Survivors of a deadly shooting at a Florida high school joined a march in Virginia to protest what they consider efforts by the National Rifle Association to block gun-control laws and bans on assault rifles.
Protesters descended on the NRA building Saturday for the "National March on NRA" at the association's headquarters. Among the activists and organizers will be students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School who survived the February shooting in which 17 students and staff members were killed.
Speakers highlighted the horrors of gun violence and urged listeners to vote out lawmakers who have resisted gun reform laws.
Bria Smith, a rising high school senior from Milwaukee, decried the prevalence illegal guns as a cause for violence and said police brutality should count as gun violence.
"I know what it's like to be afraid to leave your own front door for the threat of being struck by a stray bullet," Smith said. She "I want to remind every single person in this crowd: Our vote is our power and we will use it."
Fred Guttenberg, whose daughter Jaime was killed during the Parkland shooting[1], called for stricter gun laws and urged the crowd to vote out legislators supported by the NRA.
He directly addressed counterprotesters in the crowd.
"I happen to be a believer in the Second Amendment," Guttenberg said. "To those who are outside of this crowd walking around with AR-15s and other weapons, if you're a lawful gun owner, I hate the fact that you think you have to make a point to those of us who have lost loved ones."
Marissa Lang, a Washington Post reporter, tweeted a picture of at least one counterprotester holding a firearm.
Police have separated #MarchOnNRA[2] protesters from counterprotesters. Some elected to stay, and there are some
