Hundreds of thousands gathered in Washington, D.C., for the student-organized March for Our Lives rally on Saturday, which showcased the advocacy among the students of America in their efforts to end gun violence.

From elementary aged children to college students, all gathered on the streets in front of the Capitol for stricter gun laws. For many students, such as Jenna Salem, a 15-year-old from Sutton, Massachusetts, gun violence has become a narrative that they have become accustomed to.

Salem said that she wishes to make her voice heard so younger generations do not have to grow up in a similar state of fear.

“We grew up with these school shootings so I think we’re standing up now because we grew up with it,” Salem said. “We’ve had more time with it and we’re [more] tired of it compared to kids who are just experiencing it now for the first time where they’re younger than us. So we’ve definitely had our experience in this, we’ve definitely been traumatized by this.” 

Many students have been impacted by gun violence, whether it be first-hand or national tragedies. Joshua Davis, a 12-year-old middle schooler from Pompano Beach, Florida, said that after the shooting in Parkland, which was 20 minutes away from his school, the security at his school increased drastically. Davis said that the police officers at his school are armed with AR-15s and even though they were present on the school’s campus, they did not make him feel safer. 

“I know that even if there were to be someone in the school, then they could still hurt the policeman,” Davis said. “[Shooters] can get equal if not better stuff than what the policeman have. So they could get bulletproof vests and it’s just scary to me that we have to have those armed policemen every day at our schools to protect us.”

For many students, these events have been catalysts for them to promote change within their communities. Maddie Murray, an 18-year-old high schooler from Sutton, Massachusetts, discussed the actions her and her classmates took to initiate a conversation on gun control.

“Last week we organized a student walkout at our school in Sutton and I think we got a taste of what standing up feels like and we feel that this march is a great way for us to continue that,” Murray said. “We opened up a really good conversation back home, we got our community talking, we got our peers talking and we love that we have the ability to come out here and continue that conversation and keep pushing forward for the change that we want and the change we deserve.” 

Students have been attending protests and participating in walkouts to send their message to government officials, many have their own ideas about what can be done to prevent gun violence. Rory McCarthy, a senior at Annapolis High School in Annapolis, Maryland, is looking for improvements in gun laws.

“I think in a perfect world, guns would not exist. But this is not a perfect world, and that’s okay. There is something we can do,” McCarthy said. “We can put better restrictions on it. We need to actually put money towards mental health treatment.”

Many adults and older generations are inspired by the work students have put in to enact change. Fred Moore from Toledo, Ohio, attended the march in the nation’s capital with his wife Sharon because they felt compelled to support students.

“The kids involved with this movement inspired us to come out to D.C. today,” Moore said. “They are an inspiration and what they are doing and focused and articulate in what they are saying and trying to accomplish.”

Daniella Statia, an 18-year-old high schooler, said that the march was the beginning of students showing the power they hold in their hands.

“I feel like it’s nice to be politically involved,” Statia said. “I feel like since this is student led, it shows adults and older people that we have a voice and we have opinions that are different from them and we’ll take a stand and stand behind it and they can’t change it.”

Isaac Bjerkness contributed to the reporting of this story.