LOS ANGELES, Feb. 20 (Xinhua) -- Famed Hollywood movie star George Clooney and his wife Amal Clooney on Tuesday announced donation of a half million U.S. dollars to the "March for Our Lives" rally against gun violence.
The couple will walk with students in the march on the nation's capital and other cities next month in support of gun control following last week's shooting at a Florida high school that left 17 dead, they said in a statement.
George Clooney and Amal, a powerful human rights attorney, said the March For Our Lives, organized by five brave students who survived the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida on Feb. 14, had their full backing.
"Amal and I are so inspired by the courage and eloquence of these young men and women from Stoneman Douglas High School," George said in the statement.
"Our family will be there on March 24 to stand side by side with this incredible generation of young people from all over the country, and in the name of our children Ella and Alexander, we're donating 500,000 dollars to help pay for this groundbreaking event. Our children's lives depend on it."
After the tragedy in Florida, many groups called on people to show in street to advocate for reduced gun violence.
The nationwide group March For Our Lives on Sunday announced the march to advocate for safer schools and for legislation to "effectively address the gun violence issues that are rampant" across the country.
"Not one more. We cannot allow one more child to be shot at school. We cannot allow one more teacher to make a choice to jump in front of a firing assault rifle to save the lives of students. We cannot allow one more family to wait for a call or text that never comes. Our schools are unsafe. Our children and teachers are dying. We must make it our top priority to save these lives," the group said in a statement announcing the march.
"School safety is not a political issue. There cannot be two sides to doing everything in our power to ensure the lives and futures of children who are at risk of dying when they should be learning, playing, and growing," the statement read.
No special interest group, no political agenda is more critical than timely passage of legislation to effectively address the gun violence issues, it added.
It's not the first time for Clooneys to add their voices and funds to an initiative for social security issues.
In August, the couple made a 1-million-dollar donation through their Clooney Foundation to the Southern Poverty Law Center to combat hate groups.
