Hundreds of Chicagoans heading to Washington, D.C. to rally for gun safety laws

Hundreds of Chicagoans are heading to Washington, D.C. to rally for gun safety laws.

Once they arrive, they plan on meeting with high-profile members of both the House and Senate.

The outcry against gun violence was so great that by the time the buses left, they had more people who showed up than they had spots for.

The toll of gun violence is personal for one family. 

At just 3 years old, Emari experiences it every day. Her mother, Destiny Nicholas, was killed in a Southwest Side shooting just five months ago at the age of 23.

Emari was hanging onto her grandmother, Destiny's mom, with her picture on a button, as the two prepared to join hundreds of others on a trek, halfway across the country.

“Once I experienced for myself, my heart just bleeds for the mothers who see a baby one day and the next hour doesn't,” said Fredricka Nicholas. 

Believing the fight for that future is now, 600 people boarded six different buses, driving overnight. That’s where a Congressional House subcommittee will gather, in the morning, for a hearing on the community response to gun violence.

“We always talk about the second amendment and the right to bear arms -- what about the right to live?” said Father Michael Pfleger, Faith Community of Saint Sabina.