NYC 'March For Our Lives' Gets Underway Expecting Thousands

NEW YORK CITY, NY -- New York students, teachers and parents gathered Saturday at Columbus Circle for a rally demanding tighter gun controls before taking to the streets as part of nationwide March For Our Lives demonstrations expected to draw hundreds of thousands of people.

Just days after 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz shot up their hallways with an AR-15-style assault rifle, students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School began organizing a march on Washington D.C. to demand stricter gun control laws. The idea inspired young people to come together for a global "March For Our Lives" protest on March 24.

"March For Our Lives" protesters began taking to streets around the world with three demands from U.S. Congress: A ban on assault rifles like those used in the Parkland and Las Vegas shootings, a limitation on high-capacity magazines and a comprehensive bill that would close loopholes that allow people to buy guns in some cases without background checks.

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While roughly 30,000 people are expected at the main march just blocks from the nation's capitol on Pennsylvania Avenue, thousands more were to attend its sister march in Manhattan, which began as a small Facebook event made by Columbia Law Student Alex Clavering.

"He invited 30 friends to join, and by the next day we had a thousand people," said Julia Ghahramani, a classmate of Clavering who helped organize the march.

The school shooting had hit particularly close to home for Clavering, who'd recently spent a year teaching English to children in Malaysia. When he heard what the Marjory Stoneman Douglas students were doing, he wanted to help.

"I think both of us were really prompted and inspired by the younger students who were really ready to make this work," Ghahramani told Patch.

Now, tens of thousands are expected to pack the march, which started with the rally spanning 13 blocks back from Columbus Circle along Central Park.

"Our permit's for 30,000 people, but I'm guessing we're going to exceed that," Ghahramani said.

Whether you're among those planning to protest or trying to avoid the march altogether, here's everything you need to know about the NYC March For Our Lives:

The rally:

The NYC March For Our Lives will kick off with a rally at 11 a.m. near Columbus Circle, organizers said. The rally will span 13 blocks along Central Park West to the entry point at West 72nd Street. Participants are advised to be there by 10 a.m.

Students of Marjory Stoneman Douglas, a teacher from Sandy Hook and a local survivor of gun violence are slated to speak at the hourlong rally, organizers said. Around 200 volunteers will be stationed at voter registration booths throughout it.

The rally was to end at around noon, when the march begins.

March route:

The march will begin at Columbus Circle, head east along Central Park South and then down Sixth Avenue toward Midtown, where it will end on 44th Street organizers said.

Marchers must enter from the rally gates at West 72nd Street and Central Park West.

March start time:

The march will begin at noon, but protesters must go through the rally entrance at West 72nd Street to participate, and those gates close once the rally begins at 11 a.m., organizers said.

What to bring and what not to bring:

While signs are welcome at the march, any made with wood or metal won't be allowed in, organizers said. The NYPD will conduct security checks at the march and large bags - or nontransparent plastic bags -won't be allowed in. Strollers are permitted.

Be warned, no restrooms will be available inside the rally and once you leave, you won't be allowed to re-enter.

Lead photo by Karen Ducey/Getty Images.