Hundreds of thousands of protesters across the United States came together on March 24, 2018 to advocate for change for the children, families, friends, and strangers that have been affected by gun violence in the United States. As well as for the victims and survivors of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting among countless others. A new wave of activism has swept across the nation, and victims having survived harrowing experiences, such as that of Stoneman Douglas, are advocating alongside those who understand their pain, to make sure that future generations don’t have to ask the question, ‘Am I next?’

Brett Foster, a junior at Lincoln Southeast, attended and spoke at the march. He marched because he didn’t want future generations to have to walk into their schools with the thought that they might never walk out.

“Nobody should ever feel that way at a safe place such as a school,” said Foster. “There is nothing like the feeling of solidarity you get when you’re marching alongside so many people fighting for one cause. I was at the front of the march, and I could hear people chanting the same words that I was chanting entire blocks behind me.”

Lincoln’s own March for Our Lives was organized by a board of high school students looking to get the message across that their voice matters, especially when it’s the one being put at risk. Many of the students who helped organize the march were able to speak on why they were marching when the group stopped and rallied at the Capitol.

“When I was giving my speech, the crowd was so supportive and responsive that it took away most of my nerves,” said Foster. “I knew that the crowd was with me and feeling the exact same way that I was.”

Foster hopes to send the message to his representatives that this is a force to be reckoned with.

“We’ve had enough of gun violence and school shootings. One of the loudest chants at the rally was ‘Vote them out!’ Our representatives should know that if they don’t take action on guns, the people will vote in new representatives that will. Future generations should know that sometimes adults make mistakes. When they do, it’s the kids that can make the change,” said Foster. “Our culture is always preparing for the next step in our lives; high school, then college, then adult life. However, you don’t have to wait to become an adult before you start raising your voice. If you want to take a stand, you can do that even if you are only 17, even if you’re ‘just a high school student.’”

Alongside advocating to our representatives, Foster notes that the aim of the march is not to eliminate guns as a whole, just to create ways for the use of guns to be safe for bystanders, and otherwise.

“March for Our Lives is not trying to take away the Second Amendment or ban all guns. The march is just trying to make some changes to the system,” said Foster. “The first step that we need to take is enforcing the laws that we already have in place for guns more effectively and closing the loopholes in the system. You should be able to buy a gun, but why would you need 20?”

Wherever you fall on the political spectrum, it’s important to pay attention to the fact that real, human, lives are being lost. We must come together as Americans to protect the safety of our future generations. We are indebted to our sons and daughters, our future sons and daughters, and all of those who we now have to hug a little harder each day.

“You have to remember that this was a march, and that this is just the beginning,” said Foster. “We can’t stop fighting and holding more marches until we can have a victory parade.”

Photos taken at Lincoln’s March for Our Lives on March 24, 2018.