By JOHN GREGG, Correspondent, TB Reporter

U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist and St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman are scheduled to speak at the rally, which is part of a nationwide movement demanding an end to gun violence and mass shootings in U.S. schools

ST. PETERSBURG – A coalition of 36 students, parents, and teachers have banded together to organize a March for Our Lives rally in St. Petersburg as part of a a nationwide action demanding an end to gun violence and mass shootings in U.S. schools.

The rally, which will be one of more than 700 March for Our Lives events worldwide, will feature a series of speeches followed by a march on a route closed to traffic by the St. Petersburg Police Department. Among the scheduled speakers are U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist, D-St. Petersburg, and St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman. A voter registration booth will be at the event. The event is scheduled for 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. March 24 at Poynter Park, 1000 Third St. S in St. Petersburg.

Crist has recently expressed his frustration with the lack of action on gun control by Capitol Hill. According to a report in Florida Politics, Crist last week told a group of students, administrators and law enforcement officials at Gibbs High School that “I don’t really understand why common sense ideas can’t be brought forward, or even discussed on the floor.”

Kriseman, too, has voiced his frustration with lawmakers and has called a 2011 law signed by Florida Gov. Rick Scott that prohibits the state’s mayors from enacting stricter gun control laws, “outrageous.” “People are worried after Parkland, and rightfully so,”  he was quoted by the Tampa Bay Times as saying in February. “I have to tell them that there’s nothing we can do.”

Both Crist and Kriseman have shown support for the burgeoning youth-led gun control movement and have both in person and through social media encouraged student activists.

Crist met with students participating in the National School Walkout on Wednesday (March 14) in Washington, while on Thursday (March 15) night Kriseman met with students from St. Petersburg High School telling them: “The classmates of the fallen children at Sandy Hook Elementary School weren’t old enough to say ‘Enough is Enough’; so the kids in Parkland…at Stoneman Douglas are doing it for them. Each of you is doing it for them, and you’re doing it for your own future.”

March For Our Lives – Pinellas organizers have not announced the route for the event’s march and are confirming additional speakers. They are looking for volunteers to help with set-up and cleanup. To volunteer, go to m.signupgenius.com.

Additionally, a GoFundMe fundraiser has been started to help pay for the event’s costs. To contribute, go to gofundme.com.

For information about the rally and march, go to facebook.com/events or pinellas4parkland.org.

St. Petersburg | March for Our Lives | Gun Violence | Charlie Crist | Rick Kriseman | Rally | Events | Tampabay News

#StPetersburg #MarchforOurLives #GunViolence #CharlieCrist #RickKriseman #Rally #Events #TampabayNews