Scenes from the March Against Gun Violence across the Brooklyn Bridge

By Nathan Morris

Thousands of New Yorkers marched for their lives across the Brooklyn Bridge on Saturday to demand government officials and lawmakers to enact stricter gun safety laws. Shouting “Hey Hey, Ho Ho, the NRA Has Got to Go,” members in the crowd raised their signs high up in the air to call for change.

Organized by March For Our Lives and partnered with Youth Over Guns, the march comes in the middle of a deadly year in which there have already been more than 250 mass shootings in the United States, including the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas and at a grocery store in Buffalo, New York. The march was also a way to honor those lives that were lost.

Last weekend, gun violence continued to rip through multiple cities like Philadelphia and Chattanooga, where it was considered to be the deadliest weekend in mass shootings this year and resulted in at least 15 dead and many others wounded.

Just a day after the march, on Sunday, the Senate introduced a bipartisan response to the mass shootings that took place last month, which outlines efforts to make schools safer and bring forth mental health programs. Votes are not imminent on this agreement, though, and for the thousands in the crowd on Saturday, the time to act is now.

Here are a few scenes from Saturday’s march:

Nathan Morris

One of the leaders of the march shouts over her megaphone to end gun violence before the march concludes in Manhattan.

Nathan Morris

Participants in the 2022 March Against Gun Violence walk across the Brooklyn Bridge while calling for stricter gun policies.

Nathan Morris

Spectators watch the march from above on the Brooklyn Bridge. They hold signs that read, from left to right: “F*ck Guns,” and “Vote Republicans Out.”

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A woman participating in the march holds a sign that reads: “Leave the gun, carry a moral compass.”

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The march approaches the Brooklyn Bridge. The crowd was escorted by police throughout the route.

Nathan Morris

Two children sit with signs urging for the protection of kids in schools. Their signs read, from left to right: “The scariest thing in school should be my grades, not guns,” and “Protect kids, not guns.”

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Frustrated buttons.

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Sisters and singing duo Aly and AJ Michalka attend the march and speak about their experience with gun violence while on tour in Sacramento, where six people were shot and killed, along with many others who were injured.

“There is nothing fun about guns when you know the damage they can do,” AJ says. They said they wanted to use their platform to share their experience and to bring forth actions that lawmakers can take to prevent more lives from being taken each year, like raising the minimum purchasing age to 21 and banning semi-automatic weapons “once and for all.”

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Myles Hollingsworth, one of the front-of-the-line march leaders, chants along with the crowd following behind.

Nathan Morris

This seems as good a time as any to register to vote, if you haven’t yet. You can do that here.