Teen survivors of the deadly high school shooting in Parkland, Florida, plan to bring their call for stricter gun laws to Washington, D.C.
Five students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, including Emma Gonzalez, Cameron Kasky, David Hogg, Alex Wind and Jaclyn Corin announced their plans Sunday to mobilize in a nationwide march, including a demonstration in Washington, D.C., on Saturday, March 24.
"We're marching because it's not just schools. It's movie theaters, it's concerts, it's nightclubs," student Alex Wind told NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday. "This kind of stuff can't just happen. You know, we are marching for our lives. We're marching for the 17 lives we lost and we're marching for our children's lives and our children's children and their children."
Dubbed the "March for Our Lives," organizers say "school safety is not a political issue," according to the march's site.
"There cannot be two sides to doing everything in our power to ensure the lives and futures of children who are at risk of dying when they should be learning, playing, and growing," reads the site.
Students are also planning a nationwide school walk-out on April 20, which marks the 19th anniversary of the Columbine school shooting.
“I will not feel safe going back to school, myself, until reasonable mental health care legislation and gun control legislation is passed because at this point, it’s unacceptable,” David Hogg said.
Hogg also addressed President Donald Trump directly in a passionate response to a recent tweet questioning Democrats' lack of gun control legislation.
“You're the President. You're supposed to bring this nation together, not divide us,” Hogg said.
President Trump will hold a listening session with students and teachers of the Florida high school on Wednesday. The White House did not immediately answer questions about which students would be attending the session.
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Following the aftermath of the shooting, Parkland students hope events at the state and national level will call attention to their cause.
“We’re the only ones that can speak up,” Jaclyn Corin said. “We have to be the adults in this situation because clearly people have failed us in the government.”
Corin will drive nearly across the state of Florida in the next few days to join hundreds of students' as they voice pleas for stricter gun laws, in front of Florida's legislators in Tallahassee.
The accused shooter, 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz, had been expelled from the high school for disciplinary reasons. Students and neighbors said Cruz threatened and harassed people, posed with guns in disturbing photos on social media and bragged about target practice in his backyard with a pellet gun.
