Ethan Somers and Krista Choate are student activists that have been working non-stop for the past few weeks trying to organize a rally to take on the National Rifle Association.
Choate and Somers are not associated with a group, but they were organizing the rally to push for universal background checks, banning high capacity magazines and to support red flag laws. Red flag laws permit police or family members to petition a state court to order the temporary removal of firearms from a person who may present a danger to himself/herself or others.
The protest, "March on the NRA," is happening in more than 15 states. But the one that took place last Saturday at Colorado’s State Capitol almost didn’t happen because of social media threats.
Users started posting the threats on Facebook two weeks ahead of the protest.
"One of [them] was a man threatening to bring his gun to the march tomorrow while he was counter-protesting,” Choate said, adding that they did not know the man.
Somers and Choate said there was one in particular that alarmed them the most, so much so that they called the police.
It said: "This should be fun, get to bash some soyboy skulls. I'm finishing up my 3D printed lower. Should have the whole thing done by the rally. My rights are worth more than your life. 111 percent."
"So that threat was taken pretty seriously,” Choate said. "I was pretty angry that somebody would have the gall to threaten some student activists."
They also reported it to the organizations involved with the protest -- Students Demand Action Colorado, March for Our Lives and Indivisible Colorado.
"To some degree I expected it, but it actually happening was jarring, definitely,” Somers said.
Police determined that it wasn't a serious threat, but it was enough for Students Demand Action Colorado, one of the rally's co-hosts, to back out.
"It wasn't really on our agenda to pull out,” said Mikaela Lawrence with Students Demand Action Colorado. "Since we had so many chapters, we didn't want to make any of the students feel like they were forced to go, and we have so many survivors that are a part of those chapters. It gets a little scary when they're talking about how guns are more important than us."
Somers and Choate said they were going to go forward with the rally, especially after they heard from survivors scheduled to speak at the rally.
"They were in full support. They wouldn't let the fear and the intimidation from these people stop them from speaking out,” Somers said. “That's what really made me want to continue to make this happen."
A counter protest, "Rally for our Rights," also took place Saturday at the State Capitol building.
Organizers of the counter protest rallied in support of Second Amendment rights.
