In a little over two weeks, our nation’s capital will be filled with thousands of student organizers and families of March For Our Lives, taking to the streets to demand an end to gun violence.
This comes after the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., exactly three weeks ago, where 17 people were killed.
The rally will be held on March 24 at Pennsylvania Avenue NW, between 3rd NW and 12th NW, but many communities across the U.S. are also hosting a march of their own at home.
Thirty students from the Tampa Bay area feel the only way to make their voices heard is to take part in the Washington march.
Ranging from freshman to seniors, these high school students had been concerned about their safety in school prior to the Parkland shooting.
Senior Scott Buksbaum, along with 50 of his colleagues, had been in Washington two days prior to the massacre, lobbying for gun violence prevention.
“Throughout the year, we get constant gun violence threats,” says Buksbaum. "Most of them turn out to be false alarms but there is a big possibility it could turn into something real."
Those threats now more of a concern, as Buksbaum says he feels hopeless and not safe at school, but he hopes this second trip to D.C. will leave a bigger impact on national leaders.
“When I was there the first time on Feb 12, I told Senator Rubio's aides that we did not feel safe in our Florida schools and we wanted to see some change occur with regards to legislation around guns, and their response to me was they want to see change first from the local level. I just found out that the local level wants to see it first from the federal level,” he says.
Elana Treiser, a sophomore, says she feels the same way, worried and concerned that her school could be the next target.
“I want to say I feel safe at school but I don't think I can,” she says.
We asked student Sophie Goldsmith what could be done to make her feel safe at school.
“A lot of the locks at my school are on the outside. So, for teachers to lock them, they have to leave the room, and it would be more convenient if they were on the inside,” says Goldsmith.
For freshman Rachel Buksbaum, it’s more personal. One of her closest friends, Alyssa Alhadeff, was killed during the Parkland shooting.
Not only is she concerned for her safety at school, but now Buksbaum wants to give Alyssa a voice in Washington, to let lawmakers know this shouldn’t have happened.
We will be sharing her story closer to the rally date.
These students each want changes to happen -- everything from banning assault weapons to universal background checks.
But while they may not agree with every student's opinions on what needs to be done, they all agree that they don’t feel safe getting their education and that lawmakers need to change that.
If you would like to help these students go to Washington, you can donate to their GoFundMe account.
►Make it easy to keep up-to-date with more stories like this. Download the 10 News app now.
Have a news tip? Email tips@wtsp.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter feed.
