Charlotte County students to join worldwide ‘March For Our Lives’

Southwest Florida students will be marching Saturday in solidarity with thousands of other gun reform supporters across the world.

The March For Our Lives campaign will be held Saturday in Washington, D.C. to honor the victims of the Valentine’s Day shooting that killed 17 students at faculty at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.

Local students who can’t make it to the the nation’s capital, will be marching at 10 a.m. at Gilchrist Park in Punta Gorda to end gun violence.

“School is a place you go to learn, not where you go to die, but since 1960 the year I was born, we’ve had over 480 people die in school shootings,” Charlotte County teacher Bryan Bouton said.

Bouton, a current gun owner, hopes to see changes made to existing laws and believes the march offers a platform for students to share their messages.

“You need to track private sales. You have a universal background check, maybe some mental competencies for people that are buying guns,” Bouton said.

There will also be a march held at 8:30 a.m. at Cambier Park in Naples and one at noon in Centennial Park in Fort Myers.

“Their voices matter. Their opinions matter. We need to have a conversation and that’s where it starts,” Bouton said.

To join one of the 836 events happening worldwide, click here.