An estimated 25,000 people showed up in support of the March For Our Lives event in downtown Orlando on March 24 that was hosted by Never Again UCF. The crowd gathered in a field next to Lake Eola, where a stage was set up. Guest speakers and singers kicked off the event as the swarm of supporters against gun violence waved posters and signs to heighten the spirit.

“We march to tell the world we refuse to be just another statistic…we stand with the students of MSD [Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School] because they are the voices of the future,” said Pulse survivor Neema Bahrami. A speaker from Moms Demand Action, Adrienne Egolf, added to the point by saying that the movement will remind everyone that arming teachers would only make schools less safe and there needs to be an end to this once and for all. Congresswoman Val Demings from Florida’s 10th district fueled the supporters even more by saying, “Today, march until they hear you, march until they fear you, march until the massive bloodshed stops and until your safety is not for sale!”

Afterward, the crowd gathered in the streets near Lake Eola, where police helped section off the road and the march began. The crowd made their way passed Senator Marco Rubio’s office and ended at the Dr. Phillips Center lawn. The event lasted until around 4 p.m as the the crowd dissipated.

There was little appearance from NRA supporters as the majority who showed up protested for gun control. An activist, Lauren Licona, who drove from Sanford, was one among many students who came to aid Never Again UCF. Her poster posed the question “Am I Next?” in red ink. Around it, she wrote the names of people who have died in recent mass shootings such as Sandy Hook and Las Vegas. Licona says that even the people who do not believe in what everyone was marching for could find their life on the line next and to consider how random and frequent the shootings have been.

The lead organizer of Never Again UCF, Trevor Wild, says the march is just the start of things. “This is not ending when the march is ending. The march is just the beginning of this movement,” states Wild.

To learn more about March For Our Lives, visit marchforourlives.com or email marchforourlivesucf@gmail.com.