Women's March

Overview

Women's March refers to the collective banner responsible for a massive series of worldwide protests and political actions against the administration and policies of United States President Donald Trump. The first Women's March, held in 2017, saw as many as 5 million people around the world participating.

Background

On November 9th, 2016, a Facebook^[1] event page was created for a demonstration in protest of Trump's inauguration titled "Women's March on Washington," during which participants plan to walk from the Lincoln Memortial to the White House on the morning of January 21st, 2017. Within two months, the event gathered upwards of 200,000 "going" RSVPs. On December 23rd, a "Women's March on New York City" event was created, garnering more than 66,000 "going" RSVPs over the next month.^[2]

Development

On January 12th, organizers released a policy platform for the demonstration, which addressed several issues related to social justice and reproductive rights:^[2][4]

"Our liberation is bound in each other’s. The Women’s March on Washington includes leaders of organizations and communities that have been building the foundation for social progress for generations. We welcome vibrant collaboration and honor the legacy of the movements before us – the suffragists and abolitionists, the Civil Rights Movement, the feminist movement, the American Indian Movement, Occupy Wall Street, Marriage Equality, Black Lives Matter, and more – by employing a decentralized, leader-full structure and focusing on an ambitious, fundamental and comprehensive agenda."

2017

The first Womens March was held around the world on January 21st, 2017. Cities around the United States, such as New York City, Washington, D.C., Chicago and more participated in the march. In Washington, D.C., more than 500,000 people participated in the march--300,000 more than originally expected. The city's subway system counted more than one million trips that day, the most in the city's history. Protests and demonstrations under the Women's March banner took place in more than 600 nations around the world, including 6 Tel Aviv, Barcelona, Mexico City, Berlin and Yellowknife in Canada’s Northwest Territories.^[3] While the numbers are disputed, some agencies reported that an estimated 5 million people around the world participated in the protest. The Washington Post named it "likely the largest single-day demonstration in recorded U.S. history."

2018

For the one year anniversary of the Women's March, organizers have announced that they will be doing another series of actions in protest of the Trump Administration. On January 20th, 2018, organizers will gather in Las Vegas, Nevada for Women's March: Power to the Polls.^[7] The event will the beginning of a voter registration initiative by the Womens March and its organizers. In their mission statement, the group announced their goals for the action:

"The national voter registration tour will target swing states to register new voters, engage impacted communities, harness our collective energy to advocate for policies and candidates that reflect our values, and collaborate with our partners to elect more women and progressives candidates to office. The coordinated campaign will build upon Women’s March’s ongoing work uplifting the voices and campaigns of the nation’s most marginalized communities to create transformative social and political change."

In addition to the Las Vegas event, there will be marches held in more than 600 cities around the United States on the one-year anniversary of the march.^[8][9]

Related Memes

Pussyhats

Pussyhats are pink knit caps shaped that have two points on the top to resemble cat ears. The hats were inspired by and created for the protesters of the Womens March as a sign of solidarity for the action. Founded by Los Angeles residents Krista Suh and Jayna Zweiman, the pussyhats were conceived on "the idea of creating a sea of pink hats at Women’s Marches everywhere that would make both a bold and powerful visual statement of solidarity, and also allow people who could not participate themselves – whether for medical, financial, or scheduling reasons -- a visible way to demonstrate their support for women’s rights."^[6]

Search Interest

External References