NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — From parents, activists, such as Moms Demand Action, to a well-known hate group, Proud Boys, many Tennesseans are making their presence known at the State Capitol. However, one group, in particular, is also sending a clear message—Tennessee physicians.

News 2 met up with one doctor who was working the front lines the day of The Covenant School shooting.

“We really felt helpless. There was not much we could do for those patients,” Dr. Joseph Fusco said back in March.

News 2 sat down with Dr. Fusco just days after The Covenant School shooting.  

Dr. Fusco was working the front lines when patients were transported to Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, where no one survived.

“That day really had a significant part of my life,” Dr. Fusco said.

Now, he’s sharing what he witnessed on the pediatric mass casualty response floor to lawmakers.

“It left me feeling utterly helpless and it was a stark reminder that no community is safe to the scourge of gun violence,” he said.

“A sweet child that I had literally just shared a joke with the day before, has tragically died,” said Dr. Chetan Mukundan, a Nashville pediatrician.

Two of Dr. Mukundan’s patients were among the victims. Now, he said he’s using his voice because they no longer have theirs.

“Right before I came to speak, one of the moms of the victims sent me a picture of her child to remind me why I’m doing this,” Dr. Mukundan said.

He said, while speaking in front of lawmakers is new for him, it’s an obligation these doctors now all have.

“It’s really meaningful that we have people on the frontlines coming and hearing our voices and I think one of the important things in any political realm is nothing is going to happen without a push,” said Dr. Fusco. “If we aren’t vocal to the things that we are seeing every day and that are affecting our kids then nothing will ever change.”

These doctors aren’t alone. On Monday, over a dozen physicians hand-delivered a petition to lawmakers calling for common sense gun laws.

The petition had over 11 hundred signatures from physicians across the state.