'We won’t have our freedom anymore.' Kentuckians rally for gun rights at state Capitol

FRANKFORT, Ky. — On the final day of the legislative session, more than 100 people rallied in Frankfort to support their access to guns at a time when students nationwide are protesting gun violence and urging politicians to pass reforms to prevent mass shootings.

People gathered outside the Kentucky Capitol early Saturday afternoon despite drizzling rain, some of them with guns holstered or slung across their backs. Several waved American flags.

The event was held as part of an organized effort to get Americans to show up Saturday at statehouses across the country in a united show of opposition to gun regulations.

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Beverley Skaggs, a 70-year-old woman from Campbellsville, said she came to the rally because she has been wanting to have a voice on the issue.

She cautioned against blaming guns for violence and said that individuals who don’t have the “right kind of heart” are the ones responsible for hurting people.

“I feel like if they take our guns away, we won’t have our freedom anymore,” she said.

The pro-gun rallies come three weeks after hundreds of thousands of people marched in Washington, D.C., to demand tougher gun laws. Hundreds of students marched in downtown Louisville the same day in a sister protest.

Students across the country have been calling for reforms to help prevent mass shootings after 17 people were killed in a Feb. 14 school shooting in Parkland, Florida. That came just weeks after a gunman opened fire in Marshall County High School in Kentucky, killing two 15-year-olds and wounding 14 others.

Morgan Watkins: 502-582-4502; mwatkins@courierjournal.com; Twitter: @morganwatkins26. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: www.courier-journal.com/morganw.