Thousands rally for gun control in Florida after school shooting

Among those who spoke were student survivors of the attack on Wednesday. Emma Gonzalez, a senior at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, took direct aim at President Trump.

“If the president wants to come up to me and tell me to my face that it was a terrible tragedy and how it should never have happened and maintain telling us how nothing is going to be done about it. I’m gonna happily ask him how much money he received from the National Rifle Association,” Emma Gonzalez, a senior at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, said to cheers.

But her warning wasn’t limited to the president.

“To every politician taking donations from the NRA, shame on you,” Gonzalez added.

The frustrated demonstrators made their voices heard at an event called the Rally to Support Firearm Safety Legislation. The protest comes after several Republicans in Congress and the White House have brushed off the need for more gun control legislation.

Attendees broke out into chants of “vote them out,” and “Rubio must go,” referring to Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who said on Thursday that stricter gun control would not have prevented the Parkland high school shooting. “I’m trying to be clear and honest here, someone who has decided to commit this crime, they will find a way to get the gun to do it,” Rubio said.

Trump has sought to steer the national conversation to mental illness while critics question why he has failed to mention guns in his comments about the attack. On Thursday, Trump said that his administration would work with state and local officials to “tackle the difficult issue of mental health” and prioritize security in schools.

The confessed shooter Nikolas Cruz, 19, killed 17 people and injured scores more at his former high school in Parkland, Fla. Records obtained by the South Florida Sun Sentinel claim that his mother Lynda Cruz, told previously investigators, after warning signs appeared on social media, that Nikolas Cruz had autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and was being treated for depression.

The concerns of the protesters Saturday are being echoed by Democrats in Congress who calling for gun control reform. Authorities said Cruz used an AR-15-style rifle in the attack, and it has been reported that he purchased the gun legally.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., announced her intent to introduce a bill on Friday that would require all rifle purchases from gun dealers be restricted to individuals 21 years old and over.

Gun control demonstrations are taking place in varying sizes across the country.

More than 100 people, including victims of mass shootings in Virginia, protested in front of the National Rifle Association’s headquarters in Fairfax, Va., late Friday.

Protesters who chanted “no more guns” were escorted out of a Republican fundraiser with House Speaker Paul Ryan in Key Biscayne, Fla., also on Friday night.

Also, while not an organized protest, a top Republican donor, Al Hoffman Jr., wrote to GOP leaders in an email Saturday that he would not provide any money to candidates and groups who do not support Congress passing a new ban on assault weapons.

The push for gun control legislation may have some legs, as further protests are being planned for the future. Organizers affiliated with the Women’s March group are calling for a 17-minute walkout on March 14 “to protest Congress’ inaction to do more than tweet thoughts and prayers in response to the gun violence plaguing our schools and neighborhoods.”

For his part, Trump, who is staying at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Fla., this weekend, was joined by his wife, first lady Melania Trump, on Friday to visiting Broward Health North Hospital to meet with wounded students and to thank medical workers after the Parkland, Fla., shooting.

Afterwards, the Trumps met with Florida law enforcement officials at the Broward County Sheriff’s Office, along with Florida Gov. Rick Scott and Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi.

The FBI has come under intense scrutiny Friday after the agency revealed that it received a tip about Cruz last month that he had been behaving erratically and threatening to kill people, but “protocols were not followed.”

Scott called on FBI Director Christopher Wray to resign after the shooting.