“Today [March 13, 2018], Avaaz members are laying 7,000 empty pairs of shoes on the Capitol lawn to memorialize the 7000 children who have been killed by gun violence since the Sandy Hook school shooting. The event intends to bring Congress face-to-face with the enormous heartbreak of gun violence, and demand they protect America’s children with gun reform. In all, the shoes will cover more than 10,000 square feet.   The event begins at 8:30am in the South East Lawn of the Capital. At 8:30am families who have lost their children to gun violence will place their shoes on the lawn, including Tom Mauser whose son, Daniel, was killed in the Columbine massacre. Tom found his son’s shoes after he was killed and has been wearing them ever since. Also in attendance will be Andy and Barbara Parker whose daughter, Allison, was shot on live television while doing a news report for WDBJ. Tom Mauser, whose son was killed in the Columbine school massacre, said: “I’ll be traveling to DC literally wearing my son Daniel’s shoes, the ones he wore the day he died at Columbine. I think this kind of event with shoes offers a very powerful metaphor both for how we miss the victims who once filled those shoes, and also for how we see ourselves wanting to walk in their place, seeking change, so that others don’t have to walk this painful journey.”   This event, organized in just two weeks by global advocacy group Avaaz, has struck an emotional nerve with people across the country who have sent in shoes to honor the children we’ve lost and to demand #notonemore. Celebrities have also donated shoes, including: Bette Midler, Susan Sarandon, Alyssa Milano, Chelsea Handler, Vanessa Bayer, Brett Davern, Hayley Mills, Colm Meaney, Brenda Meaney or Harry Clarke.”

Hi-res photos: https://www.flickr.com/photos/avaaz/albums/72157694451151495/with/40080907834/

B-roll: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1MFMb83uw-1O-Gp5IiKVCnp1fKo6ghxvH