Thousands join Bend March for Our Lives rally

Thousands of people of all ages gathered in downtown Bend on Saturday for the March for Our lives rally, one in a series of similar events held around the nation in a call for safer schools and stricter gun laws.

The “lives of children shouldn’t even be categorized in a political party,” a Bend Senior High School student said. “The fear of getting shot at, at school, is not political in any way.”

It was one of many student-led rallies taking place across the country calling for tougher action to reduce gun violence.

Another student stressed the shootings cannot become a statistic and said “we cannot allow ourselves to become desensitized to these deaths. This cannot become our normal.”

Many of those attending the rally called for bans on assault-style weapons and universal background checks.

Bend Mayor Casey Roats, City Councilor Nathan Boddie and Deschutes County District Attorney John Hummel joined the crowd at the rally, which was followed by a march through downtown Bend.

Other students on hand said that schools are not a place where guns should be and that it’s not fair to fear for their lives at a school.

There were a wide variety of signs, with sayings such as “Guns Do Kill People” and “Am I Next?”

One woman said she feels empowered by the students and believes the young people actually are the ones acting like the adults in the conversation.

Others at the rally said the attention should be on mental health or motivating students to register and vote.

Ultimately, thousands gathered in Bend and many more across the country, not just hoping for a change, but saying they will press hard to make change happen and save lives.