Thousands filled through the streets of downtown Grand Rapids on Saturday March 24, calling for stricter gun legislation and safer schools. The protest was part of the global March for Our Lives demonstration that was organized following the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Feb. 14.
The Parkland shooting could've happened at any school in the area, said, Emily Masternak a sophomore at Forest Hills Northern High School and an organizer of the event.
"Gun violence doesn't discriminate," Masternak said. "Having to go to school everyday with that fear in the back of my mind, I'm just tired of it. And it's time for a change."
Students and other speakers called out lawmakers for not enacting stronger gun legislation after mass shootings. Throughout the march, protesters chanted, "Vote them out," targeting politicians that take money from gun lobbyists.
Many parents like Raven Lopez-Cano brought their children to the march.
"I never felt [scared going to school] and I never want them to feel that way either," Lopez-Cano said. "I hope [my kids] can feel safer going to schools and that they can know that a lot of people feel the same way they do."
Organizers say technical staff working the event estimated around 4,000 people attended the event. Some signs read, "March to the polls," "Arms are for hugging," "Imagine if it was your school" and "The dress code at my school is more regulated than your guns."
The Grand Rapids march was just one of six that were planned around West Michigan, and one of more than 800 that occurred around the world.
The national march in Washington D.C. was estimated to have 800,000 attendees, which would make it the largest single-day protest in D.C. history.
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