Protesters carrying signs at March For Our Lives rally in Parkland, FL
Today, Parkland, Florida was once again Ground Zero in the fight against gun violence. While the March For Our Lives protests took place around the country and, indeed, around the world, and the event in Washington, D.C. was the largest, Parkland (specifically, the February 14, 2018 mass shooting at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School) is the reason why the marches happened. Moreover, Parkland is Ground Zero today because Donald Trump is hiding out at his Mar-a-Lago private club a mere 40 miles away in Palm Beach.
The crowd in Parkland was huge, numbering approximately 15 thousand according to MSNBC. That’s doubly remarkable given that Parkland only has 30,000 or fewer residents, and a number of the students from Douglas High School (known as “MSD“) and their families had traveled to Washington, D.C., for their march. The Parkland crowd included plenty of children, even toddlers and babies, with their parents, as well as much older generations, in addition to the many teenagers who attend MSD and other schools. A good percentage of those in attendance carried hand-made signs.
Crowd at Parkland March For Our Lives
Most of the featured speakers were MSD students, as well as family members of the MSD student and faculty victims. Some common themes from these speeches included:
–Near-unanimous calls for a reinstated Assault Weapons Ban, universal background checks for firearms purchases, prohibition of firearms sales to people on the terrorist “No-Fly” list, and increased attention to mental health, including denying the ability to purchase firearms for those ruled to have dangerous mental health conditions.
–Another step advocated by a number of the speakers, which has gotten less attention nationwide, is to bulletproof school windows and glass doors. According to several speakers, some of the MSD victims were shot when the shooter, Nikolas Cruz, was able to break or pierce several doors and windows.
–Interestingly, partisan talk and mentions of political parties was at a minimum. Most speakers called upon “Congress” to act to curb gun violence. One speaker, Tony Montalto, the father of 14 year-old MSD shooting victim Gina Montalto, called for “compromise” and unity by Congress on the gun violence issue. At the same time, it was obvious to most of the speakers and crowd that Democratic lawmakers have been pushing for the steps that were called for today, and most Republican politicians have resisted such actions or have stayed silent. Volunteers at the event were registering people to vote, and many of the speakers specifically called for voting in the upcoming 2018 elections in order to turn their concerns into concrete action.
Local students wear t-shirts in solidarity with MSD students
Perhaps the passionate crowd in Parkland could be heard 40 miles away in Mar-a-Lago. Perhaps the millions of protesters around America today will also be heard in the halls of Congress.
Photos by Messaging Matters. All rights reserved. No duplication or use permitted without written permission.
