'March For Our Lives Rally' Planned For Southampton Saturday

SOUTHAMPTON, NY — East End residents will join others from around the nation for a March for Our Lives rally, to be held in Southampton Saturday.

According to Gordon Herr, chairman of the Southampton Town Democratic Committee, the rally will take place at noon outside Southampton Town Hall on Hampton Road.

Last month's shooting in Uvalde, Texas where 19 students and two teachers were killed, has sparked outrage.

And, while the main protest is scheduled for Washington on Saturday, rallies are also planned in other locations across Long Island, including Port Jefferson Station, Great Neck and Mineola.

Slated to speak at the Southampton rally are New York State Assemblyman Fred Thiele, Suffolk County Legislator Bridget Fleming, and Southampton Town Supervisor Jay Schneiderman, as well as teachers, students and faith leaders in the community. Afterward, the group will march to Southampton High School.

A large crowd is expected to rally and march in solidarity with the main event, to be held in Washington, DC.

"Remember that in 2018, March for Our Lives organized the largest single day of protest against gun violence in history," Herr wrote in an email about the upcoming event. "Millions came together to protest our political leaders’ inaction. They spurred an historic youth turnout in the 2018 midterm elections, with a 47 percent increase over the last midterm election and the highest percentage of youth voter turnout ever. Voters made it clear that the status quo was no longer acceptable — a record 46 NRA-backed candidates lost their elections that November. Let's do it again."