MARCH FOR OUR LIVES

America is no stranger to one of the worst epidemics of the modern age: mass shootings. According to the Small Arms Survey of 2017 the United States had a population of about 324 million people and an estimated 393 million guns. Roughly, that’s 120 guns per 100 people or 1.2 guns per person. Of those 393 million guns, only about 6.06 million of them were registered. Less than two months into 2023, the US experienced about 80 mass shootings, which is defined by one in which at least four people are killed or injured. Students have seen these horrific tragedies happen in their towns, in their schools, to their peers, by their peers. March For Our Lives is a non-profit organization that has helped organize some of the biggest marches and demonstrations in response to these shootings. Many of their attendees are students. I took the time to join them for their 2018 march in Washington DC and their 2022 march in New York City. The need to address school shootings and teenage mental health served as the inspiration for my feature film, THE MENTAL STATE.