The White House issued a statement on Saturday applauding student protesters for "exercising their First Amendment rights" on the day a March for Our Lives rally was scheduled to take place in Washington, D.C., The Hill reported Saturday.
"We applaud the many courageous young Americans exercising their First Amendment rights today," White House deputy press secretary Lindsay Walters said in a statement.
The statement also outlined the measures President Donald Trump has taken to aid in school safety as gun violence has grabbed headlines following the Valentine's Day mass shooting at a high school in Parkland, Florida.
"Keeping our children safe is a top priority of the President's, which is why he urged Congress to pass the Fix NICS and STOP School Violence Acts, and signed them into law," the statement read. "Additionally, on Friday, the Department of Justice issued the rule to ban bump stocks following through on the President's commitment to ban devices that turn legal weapons into illegal machine guns."
More than 800 marches are planned in support of gun control in cities in the U.S. and other countries, according to March for Our Lives organizers. Hundreds of thousands of young people and gun control activists are expected to participate in the rallies. Trump is spending the weekend at his Florida Mar-a-Lago resort.
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