By Cheryl Mattox Berry
As women across the country prepare to descend on Washington, D.C., for the Women’s March Jan. 21, don’t feel bad if you can’t make the trip. Start planning a local march or other “sister” activities.
Thousands of women are expected to converge on the National Mall to protest Trump’s proposed policies. The idea for the march grew out of disappointment over Hillary Clinton’s loss to Trump, who made derogatory remarks about on one group after another during the bitter presidential campaign.
Insults were hurled at women, immigrants, Muslims, people with disabilities, the LGBT community, and black and brown people. The march aims to show Trump that women won’t allow him to roll back gains in reproductive rights and human rights that have been made over the last 50 years. Organizers say women’s rights are human rights, protected by law.
In addition to Washington, marches will be held in Chicago, Boston, New York City and other USA cities along with 55 international cities.
You don’t have to be an event organizer to plan a march. The Women’s March started as a Facebook challenge by a Hawaiian grandmother and retired attorney who asked other women to meet in D.C. to protest Trump’s victory.
Check with local officials to determine what permits and requirements must be met to hold a march in your area. Then, gather your friends and reps from other women’s organizations and get busy planning. Time is short, but it can be done. You’d be surprised at the number of women and men anxious to show the new administration how they feel. Put them to work now.
If you’re not one to take to the streets, you can still show your support by donating to the Women’s March on Washington, Planned Parenthood, Legal Aid Society in your county or any other organization that has been the champion of causes that are being threatened by Trump’s presidency.
The Women’s March is just the beginning. We have to be vigilant about what bills are being introduced in Congress and who is supporting them. As a group, we must put pressure on lawmakers to do our bidding or get rid of them.
We’ve got the power!