DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - Activists across the U.S. marched on Saturday, hoping to help bring an end to gun violence.
They also took to the streets in 10 cities across Florida.
Jacqulyn Valentine says her daughter's shooting death was ruled a suicide, but she never should have had a gun.
“She never owned a gun,” Valentine said. “But someone gave it to her for her protection and she died.”
It's stories like this that activists from the group Moms Demand Action hope to make a thing of the past.
“We have school shootings, and all we get is, 'We're praying for the community.' Laws need to change,” said Leona Jackson, head of the group’s Daytona Beach chapter.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement says licensed dealers must do background checks on people buying guns in Florida.
For handguns, buyers must provide an ID, have passed the background check and be at least 21 years old.
There's also a mandatory three-day waiting period, but Moms Demand Action says more needs to be done.
The group says every day 96 people die from gun violence in America, and they're calling for common sense measures to promote gun safety.
“We started in the panhandle and we'll go down the east coast and into Naples this evening,” Jackson said.
The group formed after the Sandy Hook shooting in 2012, where 20 school children were killed.
They're marching for gun control in Daytona Beach, Orlando and other Florida cities.
“Everyone should not just have a gun arbitrarily. And we just need to use good sense with them,” Valentine said.
They say this effort is a marathon, not a sprint.
They know they have a long road ahead of them.