Paul McCartney took part in the #MarchForOurLives gun control rally for a very touching reason
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- Harvey Day
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Hundreds of thousands of teenagers, parents and concerned citizens marched in cities around the world at the weekend to rally for stricter gun control in the United States.
The #MarchForOurLives protests came a little more than a month after 17 school kids were shot dead at Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.
Surviving students like Emma González were also joined by celebrities and high-profile figures, including Paul McCartney.
The Beatles legend, wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with the words ‘We Can End Gun Violence,’ took part in a march in New York City on Saturday with his wife Nancy Shevell.
He told CNN about his intensely personal and touching reason for taking part in the rally – that his friend and former bandmate John Lennon was killed with a gun not far from the march route.
Paul McCartney, who is marching in NYC, tells CNN: "One of my best friends was killed in gun violence right around here, so it's important to me.." It's been 37 years since John Lennon was gunned down outside of his apartment in Manhattan. pic.twitter.com/DH0WRc3aY0
— Yashar Ali 🐘 (@yashar) March 24, 2018
McCartney said: “One of my best friends was killed in gun violence right around here, so it’s important to me.”
Questioned on whether he thinks gun control laws could be successful, he said: “You know, I’m like everyone, I don’t know.
“But this is what we can do, so I’m here to do it.”
Lennon was infamously killed by Mark David Chapman in Manhattan in 1980 with four shots to the back at close range. Chapman, who has claimed he killed Lennon for ‘instant notoriety,’ pleaded guilty to the crime and remains in prison.
Here are a few more highlights from the emotional weekend…
1. Power of silence
Emma Gonzalez.
— Michael Skolnik (@MichaelSkolnik) March 24, 2018
The entire speech.
Watch. All. Of. It. #MarchForOurLives pic.twitter.com/AK47lWEkAM
Parkland shooting survivor Emma González, who has emerged as a powerful spokeswoman and leader of the new youth movement, stayed silent to mark the length of time it took the killer to gun down her fellow students.
2. The racism of gun violence
11-year old Naomi Wadler: "I am here to acknowledge and represent the African-American girls whose stories don't make the front page of every national newspaper, whose stories don't lead on the evening news." #MarchForOurLives (via CBS) pic.twitter.com/o6UkEuxemd
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) March 24, 2018
Naomi Wadler, 11, stunned the nation with her powerful speech about how African-American women and girls suffer from gun violence but are so often ignored by the media.
3. Martin Luther King’s legacy
"I have a dream that enough is enough." -Yolanda Renee King, granddaughter of Martin Luther King Jr. #MarchForOurLives pic.twitter.com/gD5V8bQl1I
— March For Our Lives (@AMarch4OurLives) March 24, 2018
The nine-year-old granddaughter of civil rights activist Martin Luther King, Yolanda Renee King, made a surprise appearance and shared her “dream that enough is enough.”
4. Jennifer Hudson
Jennifer Hudson, whose mother, brother and seven-year-old nephew were all shot dead in 2008, performed a cover of the Bob Dylan song The Times They Are a-Changin’.
5. Inspirational placards
Protesters marched with a host of powerful and memorable messages on their placards - check out a selection right here.
(Image: Getty)