This weekend marks the anniversary of the Women’s March launched last January to challenge Donald Trump and the entire right-wing agenda. To commemorate that action, it’s being done again.
Although it was called the Women’s March, singular, there were, in addition to the main event in Washington, D.C., more than 660 local events, many of them drawing thousands of participants. In towns where a few dozen marchers were expected, hundreds sometimes showed up. Where a couple of thousand were planned for, two or three times that many joined. In New York City, 150,000 were predicted, 400,000 came. In Washington, D.C., organizers hoped for 200,000, and at least half a million marched.
While this spectacular outpouring of opposition was kindled by what happened in 2016 at the polls, the resistance it reflected didn’t emerge newborn as a consequence of the outcome of that election. It was built on the shoulders of reinvigorated veteran activists who have been resisters for decades and of youth inspired by the fighting spirit of Black Lives Matter, Occupy, climate hawks, DREAMers, reproductive rights advocates, LGBTQ change agents, indigenous warriors, and a panoply of the foes of sexism, racism, classism, and environmental destruction.
Everybody didn’t just go home afterward. Because we know that our resistance is not narrowly focused, not merely a matter of marches and protests, not solely about elections, not only a movement to bring an end to the presidency of one man, terrible as he is. It is, rather, an alliance that—after years of having the nation move, with a few exceptions, in directions harmful to the most vulnerable of us and threatening to most of the rest of us—is being built to stop whatever awful policies or projects our current leaders initiate to screw us with. It is an alliance directed at making transformations to benefit everyone.
As with every alliance, it’s not all smooth sailing. Not everybody has the same priorities. Not everybody is comfortable with some of the goals or tactics or personalities of this or that ally. But our differences must not blind us to the need to struggle toward a strategic unity that breaks the back of the authoritarians who liked America better when most women, people of color, gays, and the economically disadvantaged knew their place and kept their mouths shut.
Last year, the Women’s March helped refresh and galvanize our resistance. This weekend we march again. There are 400 or so local marches scheduled. The Women’s Day of Action’s main event takes place in Las Vegas on Sunday, Jan. 21. That will kick off a year-long campaign— #PowerToThePolls—a national voter registration tour, particularly in swing states and marginalized communities everywhere, while advocating for candidates and policies that reflect our progressive values. This key element of our resistance is dedicated to defeating or weakening the Republican majority in Congress and in as many state legislatures as we can.
You can find out where the closest Women’s March to you will take place at the Anniversary Event page. Just plug in your ZIP Code or name of your town or city.
There is also a Facebook group listing sister events associated with the Women’s March. Ms Magazine has created Ms. Marches Facebook group that provides information about events near you. If you’re looking to join others at Daily Kos to march together, you can find information at Connect, Unite, Act (which publishes at 7:30 AM PT each day at Daily Kos).
Resist! Persist! Insist!