Group Of Mothers March At Capitol, Calling For Ban On Assault Weapons

Calls for the federal government to do something to try and prevent mass shootings have intensified following recent tragedies in Nashville, Louisville, and Dadeville, Alabama.

On Monday, a large group of mostly concerned mothers marched on the Capitol to urge Congress to approve a ban on assault weapons.

Alternating between chants of “Save our kids!” and “Do your job!”, about a thousand people from across the country descended on the Capitol grounds Monday with a simple goal: “I want to save our kids, I want to ban assault rifles,” said Tricia Weston, of Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

Military-style assault rifles are the weapon of choice in mass shootings. Marchers said if any other product were responsible for such needless loss of life, lawmakers would quickly pull it from store shelves; they said these guns should be treated no differently.

“[They] need to federally ban assault weapons now! Enough is enough!” shouted Megan Timmons.

Timmons traveled to Washington from Nashville, TN, scene of the Covenant School shooting that took six lives, including three nine-year-olds, less than a month ago. She said the shooting has rocked the community.

“We are upset and us moms, we’re furious,” Timmons said while marching. “We don’t feel safe sending our children to school.”

The ‘Save Our Students’ March was organized by March Fourth, a group founded by Kitty Brandtner in the aftermath of the July 4th mass shooting last summer in Highland Park, IL. Brandtner urged marchers Monday to take their message to their members of Congress.

“A small group of people has the ability to prevent more death,” Brandtner said to the group, “should they?” The crowd answered with a resounding ‘yes.’

Brandtner said the Highland Park shooting happened just a short distance from her home and insists this issue should not be partisan.

“It’s not political,” she said in an interview following the event. “You can be pro gun and believe weapons of war belong in war.”

Senate Democrats introduced legislation to ban assault weapons in January. Oklahoma's members and most other Republicans in Congress oppose it, saying a ban won't solve the problem and will only harm law-abiding Americans wanting to exercise their Second Amendment rights.

But many frustrated parents see the death toll mounting and vehemently disagree.

"We’re the only country in the world that has this problem,” said Eleanor Wilson, who lives in Catonsville, MD. “We need to do something, we can’t keep just hoping that it will get better.”

Brandtner and many of the marchers acknowledge mass shootings account for a very small percentage of gun violence in the United States, but they said that should only make banning assault weapons that much easier of a decision.

They said it’s the ‘low-hanging fruit’ and Congress needs to do it right away.