A Year Later, Women’s March Continues Battle for Equality and Change

Exactly one year ago, millions of people flooded the streets around the world for a Women’s March that protested the inauguration of an accused sexual predator who won the White House, but lost the popular vote, on a platform of discrimination and division.

Now, a year later, in the middle of a government shutdown, members of that movement are about to show that it’s stronger than ever, with marchers descending on hundreds of cities across the U.S. and beyond, starting on Saturday and continuing throughout the weekend.

This past year has seen the rise of the #MeToo movement, which began with the downfall of Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein and snowballed into a massive effort by women, and some men, across the world to speak out publicly about their own personal experiences with sexual assault and harassment.

Other issues involving ongoing injustices were brought to the forefront of discussions yet again, including the gender pay gap in countless occupations and efforts to curtail women’s control over their own reproductive health.

The shit show that has been Trump’s presidency during his first year in office has, in many ways, been worse than expected. But as we’re likely to see this weekend with the second Women’s March, it has served to strengthen the efforts to resist and create fundamental and lasting change.

Along with protests scheduled for cities across the country, including New York, Washington, D.C., Chicago, and Los Angeles on Saturday, and Las Vegas, and many others on Sunday, a grassroots movement has sprung up to run women candidates in political races for local and federal seats, with a particular focus on upcoming midterm elections.

As Time reported, the surge has been unprecedented, and it isn’t limited to solely putting forth quality candidates—lasting political structures and relationships are being solidified. A transformation has begun, the magazine noted:

It’s not just candidates. Experienced female political operatives are striking out on their own, creating new organizations independent from the party apparatus to raise money, marshal volunteers and assist candidates with everything from fundraising to figuring out how to balance child care with campaigns.

“I feel differently about it this year,” 61–year–old Ann Dee Allen, from Wauwatosa, WI, told The New York Times. “Last year, I just felt kind of angry and impassioned. This year, I feel like I’m in it for the long haul.”

A list of scheduled marches, maps, and social media streams from around the world are available at womensmarch.com.

Update, 4:21 p.m.: President Trump, apparently still seething that he has to miss his $100,000–a–couple extravagant fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago due to the government shutdown, decided to demonstrate his presidential leadership by trolling the Women’s March on Twitter.