Mother's Day carried an extra special meaning for many of the roughly 100 people who came out to the Dallas City Hall Plaza.
They were joining mothers around the world, rallying to bring back the hundreds of schoolchildren who were kidnapped last month in Nigeria by Islamic extremists. Police said 53 students have escaped so far but almost 300 of them are still in captivity.
Hostage negotiators from a handful of countries including the United States are on their way to Nigeria to help rescue the girls.
Rachel Roberts-Pickett with SISTAworks Inc. said it was important to raise awareness of this global issue in North Texas.
"They were basically there finishing their finals and in the middle of the night these militant Islamists basically took them from their homes," she said. "These are girls between 13 and 17-years-old. And obviously, just imagine if you were a mother of a girl like that."
Residents from all across the metroplex came out to show their support, including Dallas resident Janelle Ellis.
"My heart is broken, and that's one of the reasons why my friend Suzanne and I came because of the feeling of solidarity," she said.
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Many of the women in the crowd were mothers, who found it difficult to put themselves in the shoes of the mothers of the missing school girls.
"My daughter will be 33-years-old," said Cathy Moffitt, "I can't imagine somebody... putting a gun to her head, taking her somewhere I don't know where she is, and not having any communication."
The overall plea from the event goers was simple. "Let's get them home, and stop any more being taken," said Dallas resident Suzanne Dooley.
Participants hoped their message will carry on beyond the metroplex and make a larger impact.
"We want a call to action for our politicians to continue to make this issue an important topic on their agenda," said Roberts-Pickett.
