In the aftermath of the Parkland shooting, it is teenagers, rather than politicians, who are leading the way for increased gun control. This past weekend, two million people marched across America, in what was the largest student protest in US History. The anti-gun protest, March for Our Lives, galvanised a new push for firearm reform - in the wake of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting - a tragedy which has since been described as a potential tipping point for greater gun control.

Along with survivors from the attack in Parkland, Florida, speakers included young victims of gun violence from around the United States. Waving colourful banners, and singing and chanting, these teenagers challenged their parents' conception of gun violence.

The figurehead for this movement was, of course, 18-year-old Emma González. The Parkland shooting survivor, who took to the stage at Washington DC's march, commanded the crowds by naming the victims of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, and then she fell silent.

"Since the time that I came out here, it has been 6 minutes and 20 seconds," she said, breaking her silence. "The shooter has ceased shooting, and will soon abandon his rifle, blend in with the students as they escape, and walk free for an hour before arrest. Fight for your lives before it’s someone else’s job."

A survivor of the Parkland, Florida shooting and leader of the #NeverAgain movement, Emma González, has been targeted by internet hoaxers, after a video emerged of her purportedly ripping up the US Constitution.

The GIF of González quickly made the rounds on Twitter, after being shared by verified and unverified users alike. NRA advocates naturally flocked to social media to disparage the young activist for the seemingly unpatriotic gesture. "I'm interested to hear what US citizens think of this photo where Emma Gonzalez is ripping up The Constitution," one Twitter user wrote in response.

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/LeighStewy/status/977668251483328513]]

The photo and GIF, which are fake, were taken from a Teen Vogue cover story about the student activists behind March for Our Lives. The original images show González tearing apart a target shooting poster.

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/TeenVogue/status/977147108276015105]]

Teen Vogue's chief content officer, Phillip Picardi, took to Twitter to set the record straight. "At left is @tyler_mitchell’s photo of @Emma4Change for the cover of @TeenVogue," he wrote. "At right is what so-called “Gun Rights Activists” have photoshopped it into."

"The fact that we even have to clarify this is proof of how democracy continues to be fractured by people who manipulate and fabricate the truth," he continued.

Donald Moynihan, a professor at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, also voiced his opinions on social media, asserting that the fake image was "Just a sample of what NRA supporters are doing to teenagers who survived a massacre (real picture on the right)".

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/donmoyn/status/977700330954809345]]

The doctored animation went viral after Gab, a website claiming to be a "free speech social network", posted it on Twitter.

In related news, these are the best March for Our Lives protest signs we've seen so far.

Last week, a 19-year-old man murdered 17 people and wounded a further 14 at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. The school shooting was the worst in the US since Sandy Hook, and has reignited gun control debates across the country. Amongst those discussing the second amendment, students who were actually present at the shooting have been some of the most vocal. Many of them have taken to Twitter to directly confront President Trump about the issue, with one pupil - Sarah - saying: "Multiple of my fellow classmates are dead. Do something instead of sending prayers. Prayers won’t fix this. But Gun control will prevent it from happening again." Others, however, had the opportunity to stand up in front of a crowd and deliver their thoughts on the matter. Emma Gonzales, a senior at the Parkland school, stepped up during a gun control rally in Fort Lauderdale and addressed thousands of people when she said: "Every single person up here today, all these people should be home grieving. "But instead, we are up here standing together because if all our government and President can do is send thoughts and prayers, then it's time for victims to be the change that we need to see." She continued: "If the president wants to come up to me and tell me to my face that it was a terrible tragedy and ... how nothing is going to be done about it, I'm going to happily ask him how much money he received from the National Rifle Association. "It doesn't matter because I already know. Thirty million dollars." The 18-year-old was, of course, referring to donations that Trump received from the NRA during his presidential campaign. "To every politician who is taking donations from the NRA - shame on you!" she said. Despite ongoing pleas from victims of shootings and gun control advocates, many in the USA are still insistent that this is a "mental health" or "behavior" problem rather than a gun issue. [[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/964110212885106689]] However, many people seem to be neglecting the fact that the USA is the single worst developed nation on Earth for mass shootings. In comparison to the UK, for example, 64 per cent of all of America's homicides came as a result of gun violence in 2016, whereas its neighbors across the pond had a rate of just 4.5 per cent. Both nations have proportionate numbers of people with "mental health" problems - but only one of them has strict gun control laws. [[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/jonsnowC4/status/965214633224175616]] The ease with which people are able to buy guns in the USA is an undeniable problem, but - for some reason - legislators still care more about the second amendment than they do the lives of innocent people. [[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/BrendonWoodsPD/status/965466727076134913]] "This isn’t just a mental health issue. He wouldn’t have hurt that many students with a knife," Gonzales said to the crowd. "We are going to be the last mass shooting," she said. "We are going to change the law. That's going to be Marjory Stoneman Douglas in that textbook, and it's all going to be due to the tireless efforts of the school board, the faculty members, the family members and most importantly the students." Gonzales certainly made an impact on the people at the rally - hopefully, her words will influence those in government, too.

The second Women's March took place this Saturday with celebrations and demonstrations carrying well on over to the next day too. Over 250 different rallies were held across American cities including New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Washington, where the March first kicked off following the inauguration of president Donald Trump this time last year. But this year, more and more cities around the world got involved too. From marches held in London and Munich, all the way to Melbourne and Osaka, people came together to make a stand against sexual harassment and abuse (a hot topic of late), gender equality and some of Trump's more... er, questionable policies and outbursts. The energy was high, celebrities including Scarlett Johansson, Adele and Jennifer Lawrence took part, and a huge effort was made to encourage people to enrol to vote in the midterm elections. While the monumental participation in the march this year across America and around the world is certainly something to behold, we mustn't forget to zoom in and take a close look at the individuals who took part and see what crafty home-made signs they came up with here. Here are 19 of the best.

1. I know, right?

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/katieknocks/status/954769206284898304]]

2. "What Oprah said"

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/kaylayandoli/status/954802160235110400]]

3. Sing it, girl

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/ACLUVA/status/954725752011976705]]

4. He wouldn't have made it past chapter 5

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/sahluwal/status/954746691806158848]]

5. The times are changing

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/annanorthtweets/status/954744659892371457]]

6. Even the little ones got involved

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/kaylayandoli/status/954753203383521280]]

7. PREACH

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/B52Malmet/status/954753187130609666]]

8. Better get your shades out because the future is bright

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/emmaladyrose/status/954775609934303234]]

9. I mean, will you look at these girls?

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/bri_sacks/status/954792378560266241]]

10. We know what you mean

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/bri_sacks/status/954783585537466369]]

11. Even the impromptu vacation-made signs count

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/donie/status/954756066050486273]]

12. Ahem

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/NidhiSubs/status/954754554377142272]]

13. LOL, but it is the effort that counts

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/millmoneyfix/status/954748712198262785]]

14. We all are

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/maevehiggins/status/954781987621031936]]

15. Thinking of women everywhere

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/cora/status/954767911163453440]]

16. All the clapping emojis go to this one

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/cora/status/954778932615761920]]

17. But was it a Hemnes?

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/aletweetsnews/status/954731262496919555]]

18. So good

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/kaylayandoli/status/954769261930704897]]

19. Hehe

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/Bros4America/status/954862350858821634]]

20. Sums it all up really

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/DodgersAndyInPA/status/954475942289838080]] Well, with the huge turn out to the Women's Marches that happened all over the world, and with those powerful signs spreading the best kinds of messages, here's hoping not too many of these kinds of events will need to happen in the future.

It's been over a month since the deadly school shooting in Parkland, Florida, which took the lives of 17 people. But in the wake of yet another massacre, a movement has arisen. The surviving students have emerged as passionate advocates for change. After making memorable appearances in the media, their powerful voices have reignited a national debate over gun control. Even when conspiracy theorists try to smear the teenagers as "crisis actors," they have stood strong.

We've already seen some change. Large sporting good stores have banned assault-style weapons and Florida passed a bill that will restrict some rights for gun buyers. The minimum age for buying a rifle will be raised to 21, jump stocks will be banned and it will be easier for police to confiscate weapons from people with a history of violent behavior.

More change may be on the way. Last week high school students all over the United States participated in National Walkout Day. They walked out of class for seventeen minutes - one minute for each Parkland victim - to raise awareness of the epidemic of gun violence in America. (And some of them were punished). This week there's another event. On March 24, the survivors are throwing the March for Our Lives, a rally in Washington D.C. to demand that safety becomes a priority and we bring an end to school shootings.

The kids haven't escaped the noticed the notice the former President and First Lady, Barack and Michelle Obama. In February, Michelle Obama tweeted her support, saying "I’m in total awe of the extraordinary students in Florida."

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/MichelleObama/status/966483852834287621]]

The next day, Barack tweeted his message, saying he found it "inspiring" to see "smart, fearless students standing up for their right to be safe."

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/BarackObama/status/966704319658647553]]

Now it has been revealed that the First Couple sent a handwritten letter to the survivors. Dated March 10, 2018, they praise the teens for "awakening the conscience of the nation" and "challenging decision-makers" to take action. They admit "there may be setbacks," but in the long run, their activism will make "an enormous difference." Here is the full text:

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/mic/status/976502415376703488]]

"To the students of Parkland,

We wanted to let you know how inspired we have been by the resilience, resolve and solidarity that you have all shown in the wake of unspeakable tragedy.

Not only have you supported and comforted each other, but you’ve helped awaken the conscience of the nation, and challenged decision-makers to make the safety of our children the country’s top priority.

Throughout our history, young people like you have led the way in making America better. There may be setbacks; you may sometimes feel like progress is too slow in coming. But we have no doubt you are going to make an enormous difference in the days and years to come, and we will be there for you.

Barack Obama Michelle Obama"

It's a reminder that no matter how ugly the world gets, there's no need to despair. Change might not come overnight, but it will come eventually.