March for Our Rights' rally draws thousands of pro-gun supporters in Washington state

A "March for Our Rights" rally held in Olympia, Washington, drew about 2,500 gun-rights supporters who don't want progressives quashing their Second Amendment rights, the Olympian reported.

Gun-rights advocates, who gathered on the steps of the state's Capitol building, want to stop lawmakers' proposals to raise the minimum age to purchase semi-automatic weapons from 18 to 21, along with other restrictions.

The rally came on the heels of the second round of "March for Our Lives" student walkouts on Friday that took place across the country.

What's the story?

More than a dozen speakers called for support of the Second Amendment at the state's largest pro-gun rally held in years, according to the Seattle Times.

“I come out and see people like this and it gives me a lot of inspiration. This feels amazing,” Aryeh Rohde, a junior at South Whidbey High School, told the Olympian.

Rohde, 16, organized a similar event last month while other students participated in the "March for Our Lives" class walkouts, but the school's principal stopped his efforts and sent the students back to class.

“Why is the only solution they yell for gun control, gun confiscation, gun registration?” asked Marty McClendon, chairman of the Pierce County Republican Party. “Instead of defending our constitutional rights to keep and bear arms daily by playing defense, slowly but surely allowing our fundamental rights to erode one law at a time, one bad politician at a time, it’s time to play offense.”

What do these lawmakers say?

Former state Rep. Elizabeth Scott (R), who's running for state Senate, said she's not open to any gun-control laws.

“My point is that many of us have reached the point where we don’t care what their next liberty-restricting gun proposal is, we are a flat out no,” Scott told the crowd.

State Sen. Phil Fortunato (R) told attendees that gun-rights advocates must help stop Democrat lawmakers' measures to add gun regulations to the November ballot.

“We’re going to start a campaign that says ‘decline to sign,’” Fortunato said. “Don’t sign it.”