Hundreds in Chicago join national demonstrations for stricter gun laws
Four years ago, Lucy Christianson marched for stricter gun laws amid the renewed fervor supporting gun legislation spurred by the deadly 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida.
Since then, she’s attended funerals of her own students who didn’t make it to 14 years old before being gunned down. Christianson said she taught Elijha Booker, a 14-year-old shot and killed in Champaign in 2019.
“Of course we’re gonna protect our kids, but at the same time I think we’re all really tired of hearing everyone applaud teachers and students for being resilient and being brave in the face of something we can’t control,” she said.
Christianson, 26, has taught in Champaign and St. Louis and is set to teach in Chicago Public Schools this fall. She joined hundreds at Federal Plaza to rally against gun violence and push for more stringent gun legislation.
The latest push to reform U.S. gun regulations is driven by recent incidents that include the racist massacre of 10 Black people at a Buffalo, New York, grocery store and the mass shooting at a Texas elementary school that claimed the lives of 19 students and two teachers.
Saturday in the Loop, protesters held signs, shouted chants and whooped as speakers urged a ban on assault rifles, universal background checks and eradication of poverty and police brutality.
The rally was organized by various groups advocating for gun safety, including Moms Demand Action, Students Demand Action and March For Our Lives, in conjunction with demonstrations across the country.
As of Saturday, 263 people have been shot and killed in Chicago this year, according to Sun-Times data.
Some organizers reflected on the history of the gun violence crisis and advocated for malpractice insurance for gun owners.
“I’m 69. When I was a kid we did kid things,” said Lake View resident Pat Graham. “We were afraid of falling down and skinning our knee, not going outside or going to school.”