Protect Kids Not Guns Coalition holds gun reform rally in Sumner County
Students want to ensure they stay safe while attending school.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - Dozens of Sumner County residents attended a rally outside of the Sumner County Courthouse weeks before the expected legislative session in August.
The Covenant School tragedy has sparked continuous debate on the issue of how to create a safer Tennessee by implementing stricter gun laws. They have a message for GOP lawmakers.
“To remind them they work for these folks, they work for these residents, and we want to remind him that this is not his sole power to make all of these decisions. He has to listen to his constituents,” said Natalie Schilling, a lead intern for Protect Kids Nots Guns in Tennessee.
Lawmakers concluded the legislative session without passing gun reform measures.
“This is not just a right or left issue; everyone can agree that we don’t want to be having gun violence on our streets. We can protect the Second Amendment and protect our kids at the same time,” said Schilling.
Many of the attendees made their way to the rally to call for unity and voiced why now is the perfect time to speak out about gun violence.
“I want to go to school, and I want to feel safe, and I don’t want to have to worry about my mom waiting for me or my dad waiting for me,” said Julia Garnett, a student at Hendersonville High School.
Garnett said she wants lawmakers to guarantee that she and her sister will be safe in the classroom but not just that.
“My mom’s a teacher and I want her to be safe in her classroom,” said Garnett.
The Protect Kids Not Guns Coalition said it plans to travel to other rural counties to get lawmakers to see that the need for gun reform goes beyond Davidson County.
“We have to just keep pushing so things can change and we don’t have to open the news every day and see all of these massacres that keep occurring,” said Garnett.
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