“Today we march for our lives, because your right to own a gun is not more important than my right to live!” House Representative Daniel Hernandez said. Hernandez was one of many who spoke out at the March for Our Lives Tucson event Saturday March 24. Mayor Jonathan Rothschild, Rep. Pamela Powers Hannley, and Rep. Kirsten Engel attended in solidarity with the thousands who marched from Jacome Plaza to the UA Mall stage to show their support on ending gun violence.

I spoke with Vivian Reynoso and Hannah DeSanto, two coordinators of the March for our Lives Tucson event, to see how these young women have been called to activism by gun violence. During the introduction, DeSanto refers to a woman by the name of Chrissy. She is referring to Christiana Duarte, a University of Arizona Graduate from Torrance, California who was one of the 59 people who died in the Las Vegas Shooting of 2017.

Duarte’s graduation photo covered the podium as students, teachers, politicians, and community members spoke out to prevent devastating deaths such as hers. According to Reynoso and DeSanto, March for Our Lives – Tucson will be hosting another event at Tucson City Hall. “Keep updated with the March for Our Lives cause we’re going to keep doing events,” Reynoso said.

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Brieana Sealy is a reporter for Arizona Sonora News, a service from the School of Journalism with the University of Arizona. Contact her at [email protected].

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