Thousands of people from across the United States gathered in the country's capital on Saturday to protest for women's reproductive rights and other issues they feel are at risk because of the newly elected US government.
The march is a follow-up to the original Women's March held just before President Donald Trump's second inauguration in 2017.
Eight years after the landmark Women's March at the beginning of Trump's first term, marchers say they were taken aback by Trump's initial election win and are now eager to demonstrate the ongoing commitment to supporting women's reproductive rights, transgender individuals, environmental protection, and other key issues.
Jill Parrish from Austin, Texas, said she bought an airline ticket to Washington thinking she'd attend Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris's swearing-in ceremony. However, she changed her plans to march in protest before Donald Trump's inauguration, stating that the world should be aware that half of American voters had not supported Trump.
“Most importantly, I want to show you my concerns, about the current state of our democracy," Parrish said.
Protesters gathered in squares around Washington, beating drums and shouting slogans outside on a slate-grey day and in a chilly breeze.
They carried signs with slogans such as "Save Canada" and "If you're against abortions, then don't have one" and "Hatred won't succeed."
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With Trump coming back now, “I just wanted to be surrounded by people who share my views on a day like today,” Bergman said.
Rick Glatz, of Manchester, New Hampshire, stated he flew in to Washington on behalf of his four granddaughters; "I'm a grandfather. That's why I'm marching."
Rebranded and reorganized, the rally has been given a new name - the People's March - in an effort to expand support, specifically at a pivotal time for progressive organizing in the aftermath of the Republican candidate's decisive victory in November. The Republican will be taking the oath of office on Monday.
Women were deeply upset by Trump's 2016 presidential win and in 2017, they converged on Washington for rallies and protests across the country, laying the groundwork for a grassroots movement known as the Women's March. The Washington rally alone reported in excess of 500,000 participants, and millions more joined local marches across the country, making it one of the largest single-day demonstrations in U.S. history.
This year's march is anticipated to be a tenth of the size of the original, taking place against the backdrop of a more subdued time of reflection. Many voters who identify with progressive ideals are currently grappling with feelings of weariness, disillusionment, and hopelessness following Harris' election defeat. This marked difference in tone is a striking contrast to the high-energy inaugural rally, where a massive crowd loudly voiced their opposition to Trump's election victory, using megaphones and sporting pink "pussyhats".
"It's a tough job to bottle up momentum," said Tamika Middleton, the woman in charge at the Women's March. “It was a very special moment. What led up to it in 2017 was a president like Trump and the kinds of strongly hateful things that he was saying.”
The movement split apart following a highly successful day of demonstrations, centred around allegations that it wasn't representing a wide range of perspectives. This year's relaunch as a People's March is the result of a major overhaul aimed at increasing the group's diversity. Saturday's march will focus on issues like feminism, racism, anti-militarization, and more, culminating in discussions facilitated by various social justice groups.
The People’s March is distinctive in bringing together such a wide variety of issues under one banner, said Jo Reger, a sociology professor at Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan, who studies social movements. Women’s suffrage marches, for instance, focused mainly on one objective: winning the right to vote.
"There's immense pressure to meet the needs of all participants in a movement like this, but having some discord isn't necessarily a drawback.
"What it does is often bring about change and introduce fresh viewpoints, particularly from underrepresented groups," Reger said.
Middleton of the Women's March said that a massive demonstration like the one in 2017 isn't the goal of this Saturday's event. Rather, it's meant to draw attention to a broad spectrum of issues, including women's and reproductive rights, LGBTQ rights, immigration, climate change and democracy, without tightly centring it around Trump.
“Runnymead Partners’ expectations are not that the march is the final result,” Middleton said. “Rather, how do we transition those who attend the march into community groups and their established political affiliations so they can continue advocating for social change,”
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