Women's March on Washington, Jan. 21
My mom made me, my bed, my lunches, my 4-H club, my holiday dinners, my cookies, my laughter, my character...and my protest sign.We marched with more than 4 million women — who took part in 670 events in 46 states and 30 countries around the globe on all seven continents including Antarctica — for human rights, dignity, equity and justice.
"It is our goal to provide the resources necessary for people to connect with one another, become accomplices, and work towards equity and social justice in this country." — Womxn's March on SeattleAfter the election I stood in my black velvet pantsuit and pink "Trample the Patriarchy" t-shirt and thought "Nothing will be trampled — except me."
I thought of my friends with children especially those with girls. What would this mean for them?
I called my mom.
"I'm scared," she said.
She was worried about Medicare and Social Security.
My aunt emailed, "I am in mourning."
Of all the reasons I had been excited to elect the first female President, the most personal and intimate one was the desire for my mother and aunts to see this historic moment. My most worldly, futuristic and global thought was that I wanted girls around the world to be inspired.
Leading up to the election I was reading: Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide by Nicholas Kristof, Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankel, and The Feminist Utopia Project: Fifty-Seven Visions of a Wildly Better Future. I thought I had some idea of what was at stake.
A friend with two girls was the first person I knew who said she was called to march in Washington D.C. She sent a message asking for donations for the National Organization for Women Foundation on her behalf.
"I want my children to grow up in a country where we see women as powerful and capable human beings. We were going in the right direction, but it is apparent from recent events that we still have a mountain to climb before gender becomes less important than individual strengths and creativity." — Erin BluJay's March for WomenWe gave.
After the election, every time I talked to my mom — a lifelong educator, a retired teacher and elementary school principal, a volunteer in classrooms and a local library board member — she talked about the Women's March. She wanted to protest. She wanted to do something.
In the house I grew up in, the four-letter word that would get you in the most trouble was "hate."
"We don't hate!" mom would say, and I would fill with shame.
The lesson stuck with me. We weren't without small town prejudices, but we knew better. Mom taught equality and respect. She taught tolerance in the schools — but she wasn't a fan of the word, "We don't just tolerate other people."
We love.After the election, I was simmering in sadness. I like to look to the future. I read feminist literary utopias about societies in which environmental and social concerns prevail. In my writing, I dream of utopias, I ask: What is utopia? How can things be better? How can we get there? I am OK with slow progress. One person's utopia rapidly imposed can be another person's nightmare, I understand. Slowly, I imagine the world becoming more global, sustainable and empathic. I loved hearing President Obama say "compassion" in his speeches.
On election night, it felt like hate had won and the future had been withheld.
"What do you want your sign to say?" Mom asked."The Future is Female," I said.
"We are volcanoes. When we women offer our experience as our truth, as human truth, all the maps change. There are new mountains. That's what I want--to hear you erupting. You young Mount St. Helenses who don't know the power in you--I want to hear you." -- Ursula K. Le Guin, Bryn Mawr Commencement Address (1986)
"The world looks so beautiful! She wonders how one can not do for it anything that needs to be done, or at least all one can do.” ― Carol Emshwiller, Carmen Dog
Mom chose "Women's Rights are Human Rights" as then First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton said at the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women Sept., 5, 1995 in Beijing, China."Now it is time to act on behalf of women everywhere...
...As long as discrimination and inequities remain so commonplace around the world -- as long as girls and women are valued less, fed less, fed last, overworked, underpaid, not schooled and subjected to violence in and out of their homes -the potential of the human family to create a peaceful, prosperous world will not be realized.
Let this conference be our -- and the world's -- call to action.
And let us heed the call so that we can create a world in which every woman is treated with respect and dignity, every boy and girl is loved and cared for equally, and every family has the hope of a strong and stable future." — Hillary Rodham Clinton.As the march approached, I began to think about logistics. How would we get there? Where would we park? Less than a year ago my mom had her heart valve replaced.
The recommended doctor was a drive away, "It's just logistics." the cardiologist said infuriating me.
"Wars are won and lost on logistics," my spouse said.
Before the march I went to a party and met three more women who were traveling to D.C. to march.
I found you could begin a conversation almost anywhere with, "What will your sign say?"
My concern about marching with my mom was for her heart. I gave up my plan to park near the Seattle Center when I saw all the shuttles were already full.I called mom to see if she wanted to go to the Women's March on Bellingham. It'd be a shorter march with easier parking, but she said no. She wanted to be part of the main event.
"How big do you want your sign to be?" she asked.
"Big," I said.
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| Via Twitter: I loved this picture of vegan public health nutritionist Tracye McQuirter, byanygreensnecessary.com, marching with her 80-year old mom in D.C. |
"I want to people to know they are not alone. I want to hug everyone," my mom said.
My oxytocin surged."The sign. It's big," she said. "I don't know if it will fit in your car."
No problem, we took the bus. The Sound Transit 512 Express ran from Everett to Seattle. They had extra buses that day and friendly drivers, "I won't charge you extra for that," he said pointing to our sign.
My mom and I were joined by my spouse (who'd gotten an unexpected day off) and my mom's friend — a devout Christian with some T***p supporters in her family. She was appalled by his character and actions. Her sign said, "Not my president!"
A woman on the bus offered us some extra pussy hats she had made. By the time the bus reached Seattle, it was filled with people wearing pink hats and carrying signs.
"Are you teachers?" I asked a group of women. They'd been protesting in Olympia the day before. They were appalled by the pick for Education Secretary.
"DeVos doesn't know that IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) is a federal law!" one of the women said.
The march was extremely well-organized with more than 800 volunteers. We took a shuttle to the park from King Street station and were met by volunteers wearing pink (and green - to be more visible) pussy hats. They gave us stickers to keep track of the number of participants and showed us a map of the park so we could find where our organization was meeting.
We arrived early. By 9:30 am Judkins Park was at capacity with 60,000 people of mixed genders, ages and colors waiting to march.We took in the creativity of the signs. The sign my mom made had two sides — my slogan on one side, hers on the other — decorated with ribbons red white and blue stripes and stars. Mom brought two small American flags too because she wanted to show her patriotism.
We stood just behind the speakers.
- Lindsay Zae Summers – performing “Rise” by Maya Angelou
- Colleen Echohawk – Executive Director of the Chief Seattle Club
- Rebecca Saldaña – Washington State Senator, 37th District
- Christine Charbonneau – CEO of Planned Parenthood of the Great Northwest and Hawaiian Islands
- Aneelah Afzali – Executive Director of the Muslim Association of Puget Sound-American Muslim Empowerment Project (MAPS-AMEN)
It took us hours to get out of the park. Later, we learned that 200,000 people had participated filling the street from the International District to the Seattle Center with signs of love, support, and protest.
Finally, we entered the throng.
The feeling of being part of the Women's March is best expressed in poetry:
"look at meAs expected the march made for a very long day but, as mom hoped, it was peaceful.
i am not a separate woman
i am the continence
of blue sky
i am the throat
of the mountains
a night wind
who burns
with every breath
she takes." — Joy Harjo, "Fire," as recited at Writers Resist
One man yelled at us as we were standing waiting for the bus to go home, "T***mp is a patriot! I have a voice too!"
We blocked him with our signs and wondered later if we should have tried to talk to him or sing to drown out his voice and bring the tension down...or?
"She's making it devilishly uncomfortable for me...she's got some foolish sort of notion in her head concerning the eternal rights of women...." — Kate Chopin, The Awakening, 1899After the march came the criticisms. People said the march was was too white, too conservative, a waste of time. The fact that it had been peaceful meant no one had been paying attention to us women, no one took us seriously. Before the march I too wondered what it would accomplish.
"These may be termed Utopian dreams. Thanks to the Being who impressed them on my soul...I view with indignation, the mistaken notions that enslave my sex." — Mary Wollstonecraft, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, 1792
What it did was bring us together.
It reminded us how many of us there are. We are not alone. And it was just the beginning."I am a dangerous womanAfterwards the March announced 10 actions for the first 100 days. The first action was to mail our representatives postcards. We did. My local print shop already had the artwork on file ready to meet several requests. Our leaders in Congress are now getting daily stacks of mail instead of just a few letters. Their voicemail inboxes are full.
but the weapon is not visible
security will never find it
they can't hear the clicking
of the gun
inside my head" — Joy Harjo, "I Am a Dangerous Woman/Crossing the Border Into Canada"
After the March, my spouse and I watched "Selma" a testament to courage and determination during the Civil Rights movement. We saw conviction.
"No citizen of this country can call themselves blameless, for we all bear a responsibility for our fellow man." — Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as portrayed by David Oyelowo in "Selma"
Then I read the March graphic novels, books 1-3, by U.S. Representative John Lewis and writer Andrew Aydin illustrated by Nate Powell. Lewis is a hero of public service and activism and these books should be part of the curriculum in American schools — they illustrate lessons on civil rights and participatory democracy.After the election, a friend asked, "What was the worst moment?"
I responded then.Today, my answer is different. The worst moment is now and now and now. It's watching our democracy be taken apart.
My elected officials are resisting and I am asking for their help and showing my resistance standing up and speaking out for refugees and immigrants, Black Lives Matter, civil rights...
We should have been doing this sooner, but now we know. Today, my sign says "No Ban, No Wall" on one side and "Dignity, Equity, Respect" on the other. My spouse's says "No One is Free When Others are Oppressed."
What will our signs say tomorrow?
"I intend to remain as active as I possibly can and also believe that the impending administration and the worst of their followers will take advantage of complacency." — — Erin BluJay's March for WomenWhatever happens next, I will remember marching with my mom for equality forever.
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