Marchers in Atlanta plan for more in political season
In Atlanta and Washington, in Dahlonega and Parkland, in more than 800 cities across the nation, Americans marched Saturday against gun violence, trying to transform a moment of outrage into a movement for change.
“Enough is enough!” chanted Atlanta protestors, estimated by police to number 30,000. “Not one more!”
The March for Our Lives was a response to the Feb. 14 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., where 17 students and adults died in the latest in a years-long string of devastating attacks.
At rallies nationwide, speakers — many of them students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas — demanded tougher gun laws, such as a ban on assault weapons and expanded background checks of all firearms purchasers. They also acknowledged political realities: the gun lobby remains a powerful force, one that prevented new laws following other massacres.
“This movement is powerful,” U.S. Rep. John Lewis told the Atlanta marchers. “Keep it going. Keep it going. Hang in there and keep it going, and we will have a victory.”
The organizers are planning and hoping for more, especially in the coming elections. You can read about it at MyAJC.com.
About the Authors
Alan Judd is a former investigative reporter for the AJC. He has written about persistently dangerous apartment complexes in metro Atlanta, juvenile justice, child welfare, sexual abuse by physicians, patient deaths in state psychiatric hospitals, and other topics.
A Midwesterner by birth, but a Southerner by heritage, Arlinda Smith Broady has a combination of solid values, easy-going charm and unrelenting thirst for knowledge that makes her a not only a dedicated journalist, but a compassionate community member. She seeks truth and justice, but is just as eager to spread good news and share a witty story.
Tamar Hallerman is an award-winning senior reporter for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. She covers the Fulton County election interference case and co-hosts the Breakdown podcast.
