‘We are the change’: students lead March For Our Lives rallies across US and the world, demanding gun control
The massive March For Our Lives rallies aimed to break legislative gridlock that has long stymied efforts to increase restrictions on firearms sales
Chanting “never again”, hundreds of thousands of students joined the pro-gun control March for Our Lives rallies across the US and the world in one of the largest expressions of popular opposition in the modern era.
As well as the hundreds of places in the US, rallies were also held through Sunday in cities across the globe – including Hong Kong, London, Mauritius, Stockholm, Sydney, Tokyo and Mumbai. Organisers said a total of about 800 events were held.
In Washington, as the number of young, diverse and impassioned protesters grew along Pennsylvania Avenue, many carried signs reading “We are the change”, “No more silence” and “Keep NRA money out of politics”.
Organisers said they hoped their protest would be one of the biggest in the capital since the Vietnam era, and it was clear they had been careful to create a diverse, inclusive group of speakers. The massive rallies aimed to break legislative gridlock that has long stymied efforts to increase restrictions on firearms sales.
Edna Chavez, 17, from Manual Arts high school in Los Angeles, took the stage with a raised fist and spoke powerfully about her brother, who was killed by gun violence. “I have learned to duck from bullets before I learned to read.” She led the crowd to chant his name, “Ricardo! Ricardo!”