Across the country marches are being organized to demand stricter gun laws.
The #MarchForOurLives event was spearheaded by students from Stoneman Douglas High School, where 17 people were killed during a mass shooting.
A Houston teacher began organizing the local march on Sunday. According to the group’s Facebook page, in 24 hours more than two-thousand people said they were interested in attending.
However, there are several people who say, although they want to school shootings to stop, stricter gun control is not the answer.
“Today I spoke with my students again about the expectations for an active shooter,” said Alyssa Dupree through tears. “How many deaths will it take for them to finally make a change nationally?”
Dupree is a 6th grade teacher who asked that her school not be identified. She said she’s had to think long and hard about how she would react to an active shooter and has decided she would sacrifice herself to save her students.
“I would do that for my students but I shouldn't have to." said Dupree.
She believes stricter gun laws could be the answer which is why she’s organizing Houston march, hoping to send a message.
“Semiautomatic rifles, they don't serve a lot of purpose for anything other than killing,” said Dupree. “I know that it's something that's fun for a lot of people and there are a lot of very responsible gunowners. [But] the wrong people get these weapons and they just go and hurt a lot of people.”
Terry Holcomb, who is the executive director of Texas Carry, agrees schools should be safe places but does not think stricter gun laws are the answer.
“Those laws, at the end of the day, cannot infringe on American citizens’ rights,” said Holcomb. “The weapon, again, is not the problem. They're going to go after a long rifle or AR 15… the handgun will just take its place.”
Instead of taking away guns Holcomb believes arming teachers or putting more armed law enforcement in schools could be part of the solution.
“The fastest way to change a mass shooting situation is for bullets to start firing back at the bad guy," said Holcomb.
“I have yet to hear a teacher say that they want a gun in their classroom,” argues Dupree. “That's not our job. We're not soldiers. We are not there to do anything other than teach children.”
A similar dialogue is playing out across the country right now; agreeing there’s a problem but not on how to fix it.
“Our airports are secure our court houses are secure but somehow we can't secure our schools,” Holcomb said.
“The only way to stop it is to change the laws with a society that is changing,” said Dupree.
The #MarchForOurLives Houston location is still being determined, but it will take place along with the national march on March 24. When the location has been set it will be posted here.