Thousands across the nation joined in rallies calling for increased gun control. The largest event was in Washington, D.C., where members of the Newton, Connecticut, community banded together to demand action.
Many of the protesters in D.C. carried signs with the names and pictures of gun violence victims.
Stacey McCoy Blinn, who marched in honor of seven-year-old Chase Kowalski, one of the 20 first graders killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre, believes government needs to get assault-style weapons off the streets.
"If it can happen in Newtown, it can happen in any town, in any city, in any state until they make these federal laws," Blinn said. "If that means getting rid of the guns, then that means getting rid of the guns."
Police departments are aiding the effort by organizing gun buy-back programs. One such program in Bridgeport, Connecticut, collected about 600 weapons. Several groups solicited private donations to reimburse former gun owners for their firearms.
However, the call for stricter gun control is prompting record turnout at gun shows.
"People are afraid that their gun rights are going to be taken away," said Mal Height, a gun seller. "They want to get them now."
Some citizens, however, say they want to get guns out of the hands of dangerous people, not take away all citizens' second amendment rights.
The gun-control debate has been a hot-button issue since the Newtown shooting and President Obama's ensuing gun-control propositions.
