Thousands In Chicago Protest Gun Laws Following Florida Shooting
CHICAGO (CBS/WBBM) -- As follow-up to the Florida high school shooting, thousands marched through downtown Chicago Sunday demanding sensible gun laws.
One poster read, "No more prayers, we want action, Congress."
"We need to change the laws to make it harder for people who are a danger to others and to themselves to get guns," one protester said.
Protesters marched from Federal Plaza to Daley Plaza and ended up in front of Trump Tower. "Throw them out!" chants could be heard as those participating called out lawmakers who accept campaign money from the National Rifle Association (NRA).
Those marching called for gun control, an assault weapons ban and gun reform.
Chicago's demonstrators echoed the same sentiments as students, parents and members of the Parkland, Florida community, who have gathered to hold rallies and vigils to call for action on the nation's gun laws.
Emma Gonzalez was one of those students who delivered a speech at a Saturday rally calling out members of Congress for inaction in preventing similar mass shootings from taking place.
"We are going to change the law, and it is all going to be due to the tireless effort of the school board, the faculty members and most importantly, the students," she said at the Saturday rally.
Suzanne Ness, a McHenry County resident, says the subject of gun control impacted her this week, when her child cried to her about the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
"I looked her in the eye and I said if you need to walk out of the classroom and go take care of yourself, go take care of yourself. It made me sick to my stomach to send her to school like that," Ness said.
Several Republican lawmakers have said they would support expanded background checks and possibly a ban on bump stocks, devices that allow semi-automatic firearms to replicate the firing speed of fully automatic firearms.
The Parkland students plan to hold a march on Washington next month under the banner of a new group called March for Our Lives, hoping to spark a national movement. A symbolic 17-minute walkout by teachers and students nationwide is also planned for next month.
Nikolas Cruz, formally charged with 17 murder counts, allegedly opened fire with an assault rifle inside Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Wednesday, killing 17 people and wounding 15 others. Investigators believe he pulled the fire alarm, causing chaos, and then started shooting. Police said he was equipped with a gas mask, smoke grenades, and multiple magazines of ammunition.
