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West Michigan students traveling to DC for ‘March for Our Lives’

Posted at 10:48 PM, Mar 23, 2018
and last updated 2018-03-24 20:26:42-04

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- Dozens of students and parents from across West Michigan are heading to Washington DC for Saturday's 'March for Our Lives' advocating for gun control.

Students from the Florida High School where 17 students were shot and killed in February spearheaded the march, which could become one of the largest in history with nearly 1 million people expected.

More than forty kids from a number of West Michigan school districts joined together on Friday to head to Washington.  They say they're ready to march and demand the end of gun violence.

"I’m not safe, people can walk in that school with an AR-15 and they can start shooting, and I have no protection," said Kevin Portinga, a junior at City High/Middle School in Grand Rapids. "The law does not protect the school, the law protects the people who can buy those guns."

The West Michigan students will be joining kids from across the nation in the march.

“To ensure the safety of all students, to make sure we are able to finish our education and go on and do all the rest of the things with our lives we deserve to do," said City High junior Qiqi Clark. "And that isn’t taken away because of senseless gun laws or legislators that are unwilling to change laws that will help save lives."

The students raised more than $3,700 to make sure others who wanted to travel there for the march could do so.

"It just shows how much not only do I believe in these things, but other people around in my community think that this is happening as well and they’re willing to help kids get on the front lines there," said Clark.

Portinga is optimistic that change will happen, even if it's not overnight.

"It can be the start of major changes, major activism, influenced by young voters who, like me, are coming upon the age where they can start to vote and it can be the start of people interested in politics and interested in the world around them and willing to fight and protest for the change they want to see," he said.

The march in DC is scheduled for Saturday at noon. Watch the march in DC by clicking here.

For more information about the event planned in Grand Rapids click here.