WASHINGTON -- Emma Gonzalez’s silence and tears brought a sudden profound stillness to a crowd that came to chant, protest and rage at the March For Our Lives rally against gun violence Saturday.
She stood quietly through isolated shouts of support and tentative chants that broke out in pockets of the crowd where hundreds of thousands waited for the Parkland, Fla., shooting survivor to speak.
She looked straight ahead, stoically at first. And then her long breaths became short gasps, her brow became deeply furrowed and her cheeks became moist with tears. A somber silence settled over Pennsylvania Avenue.
Finally, Ms. Gonzalez spoke.
“Since the time I came out here, it has been six minutes and 20 seconds. The shooter has ceased shooting and will soon abandon his rifle, blend in with the students as they escape, and walk free for an hour before arrest,” said Ms. Gonzalez, who has become the face of the latest mass school shooting.
“Fight for your lives before it’s someone else’s job,” she said before abruptly leaving the podium as chants of “Emma! Emma!” rolled through the enormous crowd, returning it to boisterous exuberance.
It was one of the poignant moments during the student-led march that had offshoots in cities around the country.
By all appearances — there were no official numbers — Washington’s rally rivaled the women’s march last year that drew far more than the predicted 300,000.
The National Rifle Association went silent on Twitter as the protests unfolded, in contrast to its reaction to the nationwide school walkouts against gun violence March 14, when it tweeted a photo of an assault rifle and the message “I’ll control my own guns, thank you.”
President Donald Trump was in Florida for the weekend and did not weigh in on Twitter either.
White House spokesman Zach Parkinson said: “We applaud the many courageous young Americans exercising their First Amendment rights today.” He pointed to Mr. Trump’s efforts to ban bump stocks and his support for school-safety measures and extended background checks for gun purchases.
A group of 50 came from several Pittsburgh schools on a bus trip put together by youth organizers from the social justice group One Pennsylvania. They brought signs, bullhorns, chants, matching orange shirts and loud voices.
“My main goal was for Pittsburgh to be loud,” said Cheyenne Springette, a 17-year-old student at Pittsburgh Creative and Performing Arts School, who helped organize the trip. “It’s empowering to be chanting in unison.”
She said the National Rifle Association has too much influence over politicians and that students like her need to let them know that’s no longer OK.
“We’re coming up as the next generation and we are willing to come up and change that,” said Ms. Springette.
Adults in the crowd said they believe the Parkland students can do what other school shooting survivors before them haven’t been able to: inspire real change.
“This generation is very different. This generation is going to do something,” said Kristin Stablein, who traveled from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., for the rally.
Around her people chanted “Never again!” and carried signs with messages like “G(un)safe,” “Thoughts and prayers don’t save lives,” and “Active voter drill.”
Jeannie Forrest, 57, of Manhattan, carried a poster of children’s television icon Fred Rogers with the words “Don’t shoot thy neighbor” on it.
“I think he’d be very disappointed in us because we’re letting all these kids die. I think he would be in tears to know that we’ve sold out, that we’re not standing up for these kids,” Ms. Forrest said.
Churches including St. Paul’s Episcopal in Mt. Lebanon and the Church of the Holy Cross in Homewood also organized trips for the D.C. rally.
“It was critical that we made sure that our young people were able to be here. It’s about violence with guns, but more importantly it’s about making sure our young people in Homewood got an opportunity to march for their lives,” said the Rev. Torrey Johnson of the Church of the Holy Cross.
Jenna Gentert-Corso, 14, who came with the St. Paul’s group, said she is frustrated that other countries have been quick to strengthen gun laws after a single mass shooting, but the United States hasn’t been willing to even after shootings at Columbine, Sandy Hook and now Parkland schools.
“We’re normalizing shootings, and I hate that so much,” she said. She said it’s up to her generation to change things.
“Adults aren’t taking us seriously but in a couple of years we are going to be adults and we are really going to change things,” Jenna said.
Jack Horrigan, 15, of Mt. Lebanon, is similarly minded.
“Kids shouldn’t have to worry about getting shot. In a public school, kids are losing their lives and people in the Capitol over there aren’t doing anything about it,” he said pointing down Pennsylvania Avenue. “They don’t understand that lives are more important than guns. The people here right now are desperately begging for change.”
Elijah Melvin, 14, of Dormont, said he doesn’t feel safe at school and that the active-shooter drills at Keystone Oaks are unnerving.
“We shouldn’t have to do these crazy rehearsals of what to do when someone has a gun,” Elijah said. Students shouldn’t have to think about those things.
Numerous rally participants said they support the right to own guns but believe there should be bans on assault weapons, stricter age restrictions for gun purchases, and expanded background checks.
“I’m not saying take guns away but there is definitely a need for stronger laws. AR-15s? We don’t need those. No civilian needs one of those,” Elijah said.
Gun owners at the march agreed.
“I’m a hunter. I own guns, but I certainly can’t imagine a need for an assault weapon,” said Robert J. Lesnick, a chief administrative law judge for the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission.
“You have to balance the good with the harm, and on balance I can’t justify assault weapons. Because of the volume of people they can kill I can’t justify people having them,” Judge Lesnick said.
In rally speeches and television appearances later, Parkland students said policymakers haven’t heard the last from them.
“We will continue to fight for our dead friends,” 17-year-old Delaney Tarr said from the stage.
Later, in a television interview, classmate Alfonso Calderon told CNN “This wasn’t the climax of what the Parkland students and the rest of the world can do. This is only the beginning.”
Washington Bureau Chief Tracie Mauriello: tmauriello@post-gazette.com; 703-996-9292 or on Twitter @pgPoliTweets. Associated Press contributed.
First Published: March 25, 2018, 1:40 a.m.
