WASHINGTON (WSVN) — Victims of gun violence banded together in the nation’s capital to ask elected officials for a real change.
Heartbroken communities gathered Wednesday in Washington, D.C. to take part in the March Fourth rally.
Among those in attendance were families and survivors of the mass shootings in Uvalde, Texas and Highland Park, Illinois.
Kimberly Rubio, who lost her child, fourth grader Lexi Rubio, in the massacre at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, said their patience is at an end.
“We are no longer asking for change. We are demanding it, and we are angry as hell,” she said.
At the top of the demonstrators’ list of concerns is the need for a nationwide ban on assault weapons.
Rubio urged Congress to do more against gun violence.
“If my words resonate with even one politician and encourage them to push for change, then I’ll be saving so many parents from the devastation that is burying your child,” she said.
Javier Cáceres, who lost his daughter in the Texas shooting, read out the names of the 21 Uvalde victims.
“Evan Mireles, Irma Garcia, Jacqueline Cáceres, my daughter,” he said.
Cáceres also pressed politicians to take more action.
“Enough is enough. We are gonna fight, and we’re not stopping until something is done,” he said.
Others at the rally, including survivors of the mass shooting at Highland Park, said they share the same mission.
“I am done being scared in public spaces because somebody else says that their rights are more important than ours. That is not the way we live in this country,” said a speaker.
“I am done being complacent and desensitized. I am certainly sick of everyone’s empty thoughts and prayers with no action to back them up. Action is what is needed now,” said shooting survivor Abby Brosio.
The protest comes after President Biden signed the bipartisan Safer Communities Act into law. The new law includes enhanced background checks for gun buyers under 21, support for red flag laws, and investment in mental health care and school safety.
However, marchers like gun violence prevention advocate Kina Collins said that’s not enough.
“We need to make sure that Highland Park is the last mass shooting, but if we keep having watered down legislation, our reality is that it will not be,” said Collins.
March Fourth participants met with lawmakers on Tuesday to discuss an assault weapons ban. They have also made a GoFundMe page to support Wednesday’s march.
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