New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Over the weekend,
Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, with support from Rateliff's foundation, The Marigold Project, and in partnership with a local and national nonprofit community, brought together a crowd of thousands at Levitt Pavilion in Denver for their 'Not One More' rally and concert. Coloradans united Saturday to hear directly from local students, as well as national and local advocates working to end gun violence.
Students from across the Denver Metro area spoke from the stage to share what it means to grow up with 'active shooter drills' and how their lives have been impacted by gun violence.
Olivia Caudill, 11 years old, states, "Being able to use my voice and share my experience of what it means to grow up constantly worrying about a shooter coming to my school is all I can do. I cannot vote. We need grown-ups to actually listen to what we're saying, and to support us like
Nathaniel Rateliff is. We're counting on adults to protect us."
One of the many parents in attendance who had lost a child to gun violence was Richard Martinez whose son
Christopher was killed in the 2014 Isla Vista, CA shooting. Kam
Franklin of The Suffers, Local band Los Mocochetes and the Denver Children's Choiralso joined
Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats to provide the music.
The day had a non-partisan focus, with the emphasis on voting for any candidates who pledge to work towards gun violence prevention. Prior to the rally, students and activists met at INDUSTRY Denver to engage in thoughtful, educational and informative workshops and conversations.
Personal experience with gun violence was a recurring theme with attendees, with Christian Heyne, Legislative director of the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence, sharing his heartbreaking tale of losing his mother to gun violence, in addition to nearly losing his father. He explains,"What we are talking about here is human life...this issue is so much bigger than partisan politics. That is why discussions like this are so important, why the actions we take are so important."
Rateliff and The Marigold Project will continue to work for the gun violence prevention movement in an effort to affect policy change to protect us all. "I really want to see some changes so people wont be losing their lives to guns. We are here to help lift up voices on this issue." says Rateliff.
The Marigold Project is
Nathaniel Rateliff's foundation established to support community and nonprofit organizations working on economic and social justice.
www.the-marigold-project.org
