On Saturday, March 24, thousands are expected to gather in Boston and across the country for the March For Our Lives, a multi-city rally against gun violence in response to the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida that killed 17 people.
We asked people to share their thoughts about the march and the issues that have prompted it at our studio at the Boston Public Library, as part of our ongoing series, Hear at the Library. Here's some of what we heard.
We're all living in this world together ... We're all just trying to live in a safe world. I think people need to put that first instead of themselves.
-Chaijuana Snow, a longtime Boston resident who empathizes with those affected by gun violence.
If the government is claiming to act in your best interest, but isn't asking the opinion of the people it affects the most, then you need to understand that they aren't acting in your best interest, and you need to speak up.
-Noriyoshi Needle, a college student from Worcester who leads an organization that facilitates conversation around social justice issues.
Do I think, all told maybe, a march is going to do anything? I just think it gets attention. And it shows the sheer amount of people that really have a feeling about this, and they want to send a message. Whether we're absorbing that as a message, I'm not sure.
-Kirsten Roopenian of Sudbury, who once participated in a Vietnam War protest as a student at a military high school.
It's important that we have conversations about anything that distresses us. The people who are most for it and most against it are the ones that need to have that conversation.
-Chris DiRusso, a Jamaica Plain resident who sees the march as an opportunity to spark much-needed conversation between people on opposite sides of the gun control issue.
