From a press release:
“When:
Wednesday, July 13, 2022
11 AM – 2 PM
Limited capacity of 1000. RSVP now to attend the rally / protest
Where:
United States Capitol Complex
Rally Location: Area 7 (at First Street N.E. and C Street N.E., 1 block north of Capitol Building)
Washington DC
Families from communities impacted by mass shootings including Highland Park, IL and Uvalde, TX will join together in Washington, D.C. on July 13, 2022 to rally for a national ban on assault weapons.
Spurred by yet another mass shooting in Highland Park, Ill. on July 4, members of the neighboring communities decided enough was enough. A group of organizers, mothers, friends, families, and survivors of the July 4 massacre came together to organize a peaceful demonstration in front of the Capitol building in Washington, D.C. on July 13. Together they will demand action from Congress and to finally get assault weapons off our streets.
What started as a movement in Highland Park and neighboring Chicago-area towns quickly grew to include members of other communities also impacted by gun violence. Over 100 family members impacted by the Highland Park shooting will be joined by 50 members of the Uvalde community in meeting with officials to advocate for stronger gun control laws and to rally with the March Fourth demonstration in Washington, D.C. on July 13th.
“I was tired of feeling helpless and trapped as an American citizen raising kids who aren’t safe in schools, at concerts, at parades” said Kitty Brandtner, a founding member of March Fourth and resident of Winnetka, IL. “I just wanted to stand together, scream at the top of our lungs and beg for real change. The majority of Americans don’t believe civilians should have access to assault weapons. Something has to change, and it can start with us.”
While President Biden recently signed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act into law, which will serve as an investment in red-flag laws, mental healthcare, school safety, and background checks for gun purchasers under 21, it is not nearly enough. Marchers on July 13 will call for Congress to pass HR. 1808 and S. 736, two bills that would ban semiautomatic assault weapons and large capacity ammunition feeding devices.
“[Mass shootings] used to be a freak occurrence, and now this is commonplace, a fact of life, it is the world we are raising our kids in, and it is not okay,” Natalie Lorentz, a survivor of the Highland Park shooting, told CBS News.
“We cannot let this keep happening to our country, our neighbors, our children,” said Brandtner. “We are marching for everyone–everywhere.”