Girl, 9, leads March for Our Lives protest in U.S.

A surprise guest appeared at the March for Our Lives at the weekend in support of thousands of protestors against increased cases of gun violence in the US.

Nine-year-old Yolanda King told the crowd in Washington that “enough is enough and we need a gun-free world”.

“My grandfather had a dream that his four little children will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character,” the eldest granddaughter of Martin Luther King Jr. said.

Hundreds of thousands of young Americans took to the streets to support survivors of last month’s Florida high school massacre in demanding for tighter gun laws.

In some of the biggest U.S. youth demonstrations for decades, protesters called on lawmakers and President Donald Trump to confront the issue. Voter registration activists fanned out in the crowds, signing up thousands of the nation’s newest voters.

At the largest March For Our Lives protest, demonstrators jammed Washington’s Pennsylvania Avenue where they listened to speeches from survivors of the February 14 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.

There were sobs as one teenage survivor, Emma Gonzalez, read the names of the 17 victims and then stood in silence. Tears ran down her cheeks as she stared out over the crowd for the rest of a speech that lasted six minutes and 20 seconds, the time it took for the gunman to slaughter them.

The massive March For Our Lives rallies aimed to break legislative gridlock that has long stymied efforts to increase restrictions on firearms sales in a nation where mass shootings like the one in Parkland have become frighteningly common.

“Politicians either represent the people or get out. Stand with us or beware, the voters are coming,” Cameron Kasky, a 17-year-old junior at Marjory Stoneman Douglas, told the crowd.
Another survivor, David Hogg, said it was a new day.

Protestors filled streets of Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, San Diego and St. Louis.

More than 800 demonstrations were scheduled in the United States and overseas, according to coordinators, with events as far afield as London, Mauritius, Stockholm and Sydney.