Members of the Maine Gun Safety Coalition and their supporters converged on the State House Saturday morning to call for legislative action in the wake of the mass shooting in Lewiston.
Camilla Shannon, the chair of the coalition, says the group has advocated for red flag laws and waiting periods for years, but the tragedy in Lewiston has added a new sense of urgency.
"We in Maine feel what happened in Lewiston acutely, because we are like a family, and you can't have something like this happen to a family member and not feel devastated and heartbroken, and desperate for change, so that something like this never happens again," Shannon said.
Cheryl McGilvery of Yarmouth says she wants state and federal lawmakers to take action on gun control measures. She says she hasn't felt strongly about the issue until now.
"I feel bad that I only had periphery feelings about it until now, and it's come home so I am going to be involved heavily now," McGilvery said.
McGilvery carried a sign reading, "What is it going to take?" and "If not now, when?" along with the names of Maine's federal representatives.
Katya Fromuth, a high school student from Yarmouth, told fellow rally goers that young people are no longer willing to wait for change.
"There is a vaccine to this gun violence epidemic, we just aren't using it," Fromuth said. "The students of the next generation are done waiting for others to protect us. We are done with reaction and ready for prevention."
Fromuth says that as legislators have resisted change in the face of mass shootings, many citizens feel they are not safe, and that action must be taken in the wake of the tragedy in Lewiston.
