A west Kentucky branch of the national progressive movement 'Indivisible' is leading a delegation of local students to participate the March For Our Lives in Washington D.C. on Saturday.
The march is a protest against mass shootings and gun violence in schools. Similar local marches are being held across the country on Saturday, including one in Calvert City.
Megan Meyer is one of the leaders of Pennyroyal Indivisible. She's chaperoning a group of four students from Hopkinsville and Murray.
Meyer's six-year-old daughter is also going. Meyer said her daughter led a chant at the Nashville Women's March and will bring her experience to D.C. to help motivate the other students.
"It's very important to me that she gets to experience the democratic process and how our democracy works and when it's appropriate to stand up for yourself and when it's not," Meyer said.
Meyer lives in Cadiz. She said being so close to Marshall County High School, where a shooting in January took the lives of two students, it's important to show kids that society does not have to be one of gun violence.
"And I know that here in Kentucky we love our guns, but we need to make sure that they understand that there's a difference between when you use a gun for a tool and when you use a gun for violence," she said.
The group plans on making signs that show support for Marshall County that will include the slogan 'Marshall Strong.'
Meyer said she hopes demands from students are heard: from improving background checks to a ban on assault rifles. "Moreso than anything, I want them to be taken seriously," she said.
She's optimistic that the march will bring about change, but said it's a sad day. "I've told the kids 'I am so sorry that you have to do this, but I am so proud of you that you are.'"
She wants the march to be a positive experience the students will remember for the rest of their lives instead of having to remember something horrific like a school shooting.
The group leaves Friday afternoon, arrives in Washington Saturday morning and will be back home by Sunday morning.
Members of Pennyroyal Indivisible, the Democratic Women's Club of Christian County and contributions from other individuals and groups in Trigg and Christian Counties raised funds for the trip.
