Women's March

On January 21st, 2017, an estimated 680,000 people in Washington D.C, 3.3 million nationwide, and even more worldwide gathered in an effort to advocate for basic human civil rights. It is no coincidence that this occurred the day after President Donald Trump’s inauguration, as this march was an attempt to bring awareness to not only the public, but also to the newly elected politicians and White House staff on social issues that still currently plague not just our nation, but the entire world. Sister marches occurred worldwide, on all seven continents (yes, including Antarctica!), in major cities such as London, Berlin, Paris, Sydney, and Nairobi. Amazingly, these protests were very peaceful, with zero arrests made in D.C. throughout the march and few made nationwide- less than there were made on inauguration day.

Worldwide, people marched for several reasons, mostly including for women’s rights, such as reproduction rights, equality between sexes in education and the workplace, and against issues like systemic misogyny, domestic violence, and rape. Others marched for rights for the LGBT+ community, or against racial discrimination and violence. Generally speaking, this movement was about raising awareness for the importance of equality, no matter the gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or background of an individual. Although there were numerous signs derogatorily depicting President Trump, many did not believe the marches were about protesting his presidency, but rather fighting for rights that many feared, and still fear, that the president is attempting to suppress.

These marches, in Washington and around the world, were a brilliant and successful display of a usage of the democracy that we are so fortunate to live in and be able to voice our opinions on.

Tel Aviv, Israel

Stockholm, Sweden

Antartica

Ahmedabad, India