On March 24, thousands of students across the United States are expected to step out into the streets for the anti-gun violence protest, March For Our Lives. If you're interested in participating, it's worth finding out what time the March For Our Lives protests start in different cities.
According to the March For Our Lives website, the protest will begin at 10 a.m. in Washington, D.C., where the main rally is taking place. However, students interested in joining the march in their own cities can plan accordingly by checking out the March For Our Lives map that let you find out any planned marches in your area through your zip code. The sibling march in Los Angeles, for example, begins at 9 a.m. PT, and the one in Austin, Texas, starts at noon local time.
According to the organizers' website, the march is meant to maintain the pressure on lawmakers throughout the country to work on legislation that could curb gun violence in schools. The movement arrives after a horrific shooting claimed the lives of 17 people on Feb. 14 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. The organizers' website says,
We’re going to go to our nation’s Capital, town squares, city centers, rural roads, and village parks to demand our lives be defended. We’re going to ask every 'leader' what they’re doing to protect us. It will be unified call for our lives, but ultimately it alone will not be enough. You gave us strength. And most importantly, you took action. From walkouts, we march on.
One Stoneman Douglas student Delaney Tarr, who will be participating in the March For Our Lives protest, told Vox in February, "A march to get the entire country to unite under one cause — it is the ultimate show of prominence and support and just rage toward the things that have been happening in our country for so long."
Set for March 24, the march comes barely one week after an estimated one million students participated in the National School Walkout protest. According to the Women's March website, a million students walked out of various schools to demand politicians pass sensible gun laws. On Tuesday evening, organizers for the National School Walkout reminded observers on Twitter that they do not plan on slowing the momentum behind their movement. The official Twitter account said,
No longer are we going to stay silent. No longer are we going to keep our heads down and obey the corrupt. We are going to use our voices, and not just raise them, but unite them.
In a statement released by the Women's March after the walkout, national student leader Winter Minisee said that youth participation in the walkout showed that "young people have a voice, we have numbers, we have power, and we will not be silenced." Minsee added, "If our elected officials aren’t listening to us, we will vote, bring our power to the polls, and we will vote them out in November. Enough is enough. We demand action."
The walkout took place on March 14, exactly one month after the Parkland shooting.
Sibling marches for the March For Our Lives in Washington, D.C. are expected to take place on both East and West Coasts, including cities like New York City, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Miami, Dallas, West Palm Beach, and more. Nearly 200,00 people follow the March For Our Lives Facebook page; New York Magazine reported that around 720 marches have been scheduled for March 24.
If you're interested in planning your very own March For Our Lives protest, the organizers recommend getting in touch at this address: marchforourlives@everytown.org. However, if you can't participate in person, you don't need to worry. Activists for the March For Our Lives are encouraging those who can't attend to tweet or post their support for the larger gun control campaign #NeverAgain by using their #MarchForOutLives hashtag on social media.
