What to Know
- Students and activists are arriving in Washington, D.C. ahead of the massive "March for Our Lives" protest.
- The event is expected to draw thousands of protesters to the nation's capital.
- Parkland students, parents and activists are going to march along with activists from across the country.
Students, teachers and activists from South Florida are arriving in Washington, D.C. ahead of the massive "March for Our Lives" protest in the nation's capitol, speaking passionately about their cause and pushing for change in the aftermath of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting.
One of those activists is Lori Alhadeff, a Parkland mom who lost her daughter, Alyssa, in the deadly Feb. 14 shooting. Moments after a news conference Friday, Aldhadeff spoke angrily and passionately about making a difference.
"We are here today to make changes," she said. "We are not going to just go and hide and sleep in our rooms and be sad."
One group of Stoneman Douglas students and their families even got to ride the New England Patriots' plane from Fort Lauderdale to DC.
The "March for Our Lives" event on Pennsylvania Avenue is expected to draw thousands of protestors. More than 800 "sister marches" are planned around the nation, including several marches in South Florida. (Click here for the list.)
Demitri Hoth, a student at Stoneman Douglas, will be at the D.C. march on Saturday.
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"We have come here today to hold accountable politicians and their disturbing inaction," Hoth said Friday. "Never again will our voices, students voices be shunned into silence."
Students from other states are joining the activists from Parkland, concerned about the possibility of gun violence at their own schools.
"There are plenty of people that walk around South [High School] every day that have guns that can easily come into my school and do the same thing that they did in Florida to my school," said Antiqua Flint, a student in Minneapolis.
The shooting at Stoneman Douglas killed 17 students and educators. The goal of the "March for Our Lives" protests, according to the website, is to end gun violence and mass shootings at schools and ensure the institutions are safe places for kids.
