About 400 to 500 people gathered in Capitol Park today for a "Day of Resistance" rally set to correspond with similar gatherings across the country.
The rallies are intended to support the right to bear arms and to oppose some recent gun-control proposals and actions taken in the wake of the mass killing of school children in Newtown, Conn.
Lois Garcia, who said she is of Cuban descent, came to the rally from Redwood City.
"I came here because it's about freedom," Garcia said. "One of the first things that Castro did when he took over in Cuba was he went to their homes and disarmed them. I don't want this country to go down the same path."
Brendan O'Neill, of Merced, said, "I came to support our second amendment rights, because they're being whittled away, like our rights to open carry."
A state law that became effective Jan. 1 bans openly carrying unloaded rifles on city streets, with some exceptions.
The rally was held by the California Veterans Memorial , near 13th and N streets.
Many in the crowd carried signs, including "Don't Tread On Me." After hearing from a variety of speakers, the rally broke up at around 2 p.m.
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