On Sunday June 9 West Seattle High School students participated in the "Wear Orange Rally and I-90 Bridge Walk to End Gun Violence."

The rally was hosted by Everytown for Gun Safety and honored those affected by gun violence. Through this event, Everytown, including Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action shared their dedication to saving lives, reducing gun violence, enhancing public safety, and advancing a culture of responsible gun ownership in our communities. Throughout the event, muralist and ‘artivist’ Manuel Oliver painted a mural dedicated to his son and other victims of gun violence.

The rally ended with participants marching across the I-90 bridge in orange to bring awareness to the issue. Orange represents the color that hunters wear to signal, ‘Don’t shoot.’ Orange has become the color that symbolizes the Gun Violence Prevention movement. 

Keaton Dickinson, the founder of the Gun Violence Prevention Club and leader of the Students Demand Action group at West Seattle High School, spoke at the event (transcript attached) before marching across the I-90 bridge. Other WSHS Students, Anja Vander Hijde, Ellen Pietsch, Zoe Steers, Louise Schiele and Sophia Carnevali marched along with her. Other speakers included Congresswomen DelBene, Jayapal and Schrier, along with many survivors and activists.

The West Seattle Students Demand Action group also sold stickers at the event that read, the event’s slogan, “No more silence - End gun violence.” Several leaders of the West Seattle Students Demand Action will attend Moms Demand Action’s annual national leadership conference in August!