On the heels of what some Savannah residents are calling a particularly violent summer, several community groups rallied this weekend to call for an end to the crime.

Groups including Mothers of Murdered Sons and Community Action Network participated in Savannah’s "Stop the Violence" march on Saturday.

Anne Westbrook is a member of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in Savannah.

"We have a very, very loose regulatory scheme when it comes to guns in this country. We clearly have a lot of guns in the hands of the people who aren’t using them responsibly," she said. "We have a lot of grieving mothers here who’ve lost their sons.”

Groups assembled in three different locations downtown and marched to Ellis Square.

Chants of “people, power” and the singing of African hymns filled the air of the Eastside location on Wheaton Street.

View Photo Slideshow Of Rally Below

Eastside rally captain Shawn Grant says the march was a way to “get the streets back.”

“The police can’t do it all themselves so its time for us to get involved and see what the community can do also,” he said.

Pooler resident Lorenzo McDonald said he attended the march to show solidarity with the Savannah community.

“Just being unified can be very difficult and this is a sign of unity," McDonald said. "When you’re united in a common purpose, you can build upon that and that’s what we’re hoping we’ll get out of today’s march.”

Organizers say the march was not a direct response to the officer-involved shooting this summer, but to ongoing violence in the area.

“Our problems stem far beyond that and long before that had taken place,” McDonald added.

The event doubled as a voter registration drive.

Tags: GPB Savannah, GPB, Stop the Violence