Parkland Students Challenge the National Rifle Association
The students who survived were traumatized They were sad and outraged The shooting in Parkland was far from the first in the United States Over the years many people have asked politicians to create new gun laws These activists want to make it more difficult to obtain a gun But change has been slow to come A major barrier to change is the National Rifle Association NRA This powerful organization is against gun control It lobbies in support of gun rights The NRA has nearly five million members It also has support from many politicians Even so the Parkland students chose to stand up to the NRA After the shooting the survivors quickly started organizing for their cause In a few weeks they planned the March for Our Lives protest On March 24 hundreds of thousands of people attended the event in Washington DC Protesters 6
Students lie in front of the White House in a protest for gun control included students parents and teachers Other protesters marched in cities across the country At the event in Washington DC Parkland students made speeches Popular singers performed Other students spoke too One was Yolanda Renee King the nine-year-old granddaughter of Martin Luther King Jr The speakers varied in age but were united in their message They had had enough of gun violence and were ready to fight for new gun laws 7
CHAPTER 2 MASS SHOOTINGS IN THE UNITED STATES Mass Mass shootings are not a new problem in the United States But they have become more frequent in recent decades They have also become deadlier Between 2000 and 2017 the death rate per mass shooting nearly tripled Definitions of mass shootings vary According to a 2015 report a mass shooting involves the murder of four or more people The victims of the shooting are killed by firearm in a public place Roses were placed at Columbine High School to remember the victims of the 1999 shooting 9
