We march for Harriet Tubman, Sylvia Riviera, Barbara Jordan, Audre Lorde

January 16, 2017 8:29 AM

In six days, one of the largest mass protests in American history will begin with an estimated 200,000 marchers on DC. For those who cannot travel to Washington, 386 simultaneous sister marches with an anticipated 735,000 marchers will be taking place on the same day in 50 US states and 53 additional countries. 1200 buses will park in the capitol on January 21 compared to a paltry 200 arriving for Trump's inauguration, and the related Pussy Hat Project (previously) is making efforts to ensure that every marcher has access to a handmade pink hat. The Women's March on Washington will unite a new cohort of American activists under the banner of an unapologetically progressive and explicitly intersectional platform.

If you are attending a march, the Guardian and NY Mag have some helpful tips, including notes for trans and disabled marchers. The ACLU's guide to marchers' rights is also helpful. Bags will be strictly monitored and opaque purses larger than 8" by 6" by 4" are prohibited, so even organizations like Glamour are helpfully providing lists of bags that fit within the size limitations. Transparent or clear bags can be somewhat larger.

If you are marching in DC, check out the MeFi IRL page. If logistics of travel and the prospect of a city crowded with so many people are impossible to manage, folks are also organizing a FireChat group to communicate via cell phone's bluetooth even if (as seems likely) the mass of people in the capitol crashes cell towers.

posted by sciatrix (205 comments total)

One of the things on my to-do list today is to make my sign for the march in Des Moines. We're not allowed to put our signs on poles, because they could be used as weapons, so the organizers are recommending that you attach your sign to a cardboard wrapping paper tube. The weather looks good: high of 48, which is positively balmy for January around here, and very low chance of rain.

I'm so focused on the march that I keep forgetting that that narcissistic maniac is going to be president in less than a week. I guess I should be glad for the distraction.
posted by ArbitraryAndCapricious at 8:46 AM on January 16, 2017 [15 favorites]

Protest early and often.
posted by freakazoid at 8:47 AM on January 16, 2017 [20 favorites]

sciatrix's amazing and supportive comment in the recent political thread has inspired me to get my best friend and go to the march in Seattle. I'll be with y'all in DC in spirit, and you too will be in my heart.

Solidarity and Sister-/Siblinghood forever!
posted by Excommunicated Cardinal at 8:48 AM on January 16, 2017 [21 favorites]

My sign is finished, my hotel room is booked. Let's do this.
posted by soren_lorensen at 8:49 AM on January 16, 2017 [28 favorites]

You may be interested in these women's-march posters and these more generalized protest posters (from this kickstarter)
posted by stevil at 8:51 AM on January 16, 2017 [7 favorites]

I'm planning to march in New York, as I didn't particularly feel safe signing up to protest in an unfamiliar city.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 8:59 AM on January 16, 2017 [5 favorites]

I will be marching in Paris for me and Fraula who can't attend.
posted by ellieBOA at 9:01 AM on January 16, 2017 [12 favorites]

My wife is going with a large contingent from Ithaca, and has been assembling the most wonderful collection of signs, starting with "Keep your tiny hands off our rights" and "United we stand / rEVOLution (LOVE) / Stronger Together". I'm beginning to worry about tear gas... :(
posted by RedOrGreen at 9:06 AM on January 16, 2017 [5 favorites]

Going to the march in Topeka. Kinda excited because I'm taking my 16 yr old niece to her first protest. I suspect this will be far from her last. She's angrier than I am, which is saying something. Hoping my partner and her sister will come with me too.

In a way I'm sorry I'm not in DC, but mostly not sorry. While the powers-that-be in Kansas will probably ignore Saturday's Topeka march, no matter how many show up, I'm thinking it will be great for meeting like-minded people for organizing local change.
posted by honestcoyote at 9:08 AM on January 16, 2017 [12 favorites]

I'll be there also coming from upstate NY. Human Rights are Women's Rights Women's Rights are Human Rights. My hope is that this activism will translate into local activism.
posted by bluesky43 at 9:09 AM on January 16, 2017 [8 favorites]

I will be marching in heart thanks to ellieBOA as I speed (TGV) down to Nice to check on my place there. There had been a march planned in Nice as well, but approval was just refused today as organizers applied "too late" for it :(
posted by fraula at 9:41 AM on January 16, 2017 [3 favorites]

I can't march because taking a day off from work means actually deciding which doesn't get paid that week - the car payment, groceries, a tank of gas, or the babysitter. And as my contract is up any day now and I'll be making even less on unemployment, I just can't. But is there like a fund to donate for things to help like to buy bottles of water for attending or bail funds in case? I can't go, but I could probably toss $5 at something like that.
posted by 80 Cats in a Dog Suit at 9:43 AM on January 16, 2017 [15 favorites]

I'm choosing to spend the weekend with my 3 year old nephew and 10-month old niece instead of going to a march. I am conflicted... This was the only weekend that would work for me to visit them for months and months, but I feel morally compelled to stand with all the rest of you. To make matters worse: those wonderful, beautiful, completely lovable nephew and niece live in the same house as someone who voted for Trump....

Like I said, I am conflicted.
posted by meese at 9:49 AM on January 16, 2017 [4 favorites]

Oh gosh, don't feel bad if you can't take the day off. My guess is that most people going don't have to work on Saturday, and we wouldn't be able to go either if it were on a work day.

NARAL has a link to sponsor the march. Someone posted that on Facebook, which is how I found it, but I bet there are other ones.
posted by ArbitraryAndCapricious at 9:50 AM on January 16, 2017 [12 favorites]

Like I said, I am conflicted.

Time with family is always going to be more important. You'll have PLENTY of things to do over the next four years.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 9:52 AM on January 16, 2017 [21 favorites]

If you can't march, it will probably be valuable to monitor social media. If anything happens that day, many marchers will be without phone service or simply occupied. Someone needs to keep an eye on the Cheeto and his cronies, retweet, signal boost as needed, etc.
posted by tofu_crouton at 9:52 AM on January 16, 2017 [7 favorites]

I'll be marching in Seattle and handing out a dozen fleece pussyhats finished too late to mail to DC. I've never marched before and I'm not sure what to expect, but I'm excited.
posted by esoterrica at 9:57 AM on January 16, 2017 [8 favorites]

General protest advice that's going around:

Whether you're going to DC, Boston Los Angeles, SF, etc., or even your home town, to take part in a peaceful gathering, here are some good tips.

Keep your cool. Do not offer personal information to unsolicited requests. Stay to the edges of the crowd. Have a meet-up-if-you-get-separated plan. Do not count on your cellphones for this purpose. Write important information on your forearm in Sharpie. (Emergency contact, drug allergies, etc.) It will wash off eventually. In fact, bring a Sharpie with you to share with others for this purpose.

Stay hydrated and never pass up an opportunity to use a toilet. Wear the right shoes and don't carry anything you can't lose. LISTEN to the energy and calmly leave the vicinity if you have any doubts about anything. (These are intended to be peaceful gatherings but there have been intimations that infiltrators will try to incite violence and make it look like the protestors caused it. Use your own judgment on this one.)
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 9:59 AM on January 16, 2017 [63 favorites]

The Women's March on Washington will unite a new cohort of American activists under the banner of an unapologetically progressive and explicitly intersectional platform.

And yet, the only mention of disability in the platform was the disproportionate burden of caregiving on women and women of color. Which is a problem! But ignores all the ways that disabled women are marginalized.

There is now a disability right section on the Unifying Principles page, and I'm told a separate document is coming from the Disability Caucus, but this is still a huge misstep for a group calling itself explicitly intersectional.

"We believe that Women’s Rights are Human Rights and Human Rights are Women’s Rights. We must create a society in which women - including Black women, Native women, poor women, immigrant women, Muslim women, lesbian queer and trans women - are free and able to care for and nurture their families, however they are formed, in safe and healthy environments free from structural impediments. "

And disabled women, where do they fit into this list?
posted by spaceman_spiff at 10:01 AM on January 16, 2017 [20 favorites]

Vilissa Thompson is my go-to on the intersection of women, women of color, and women with disability. She was fairly critical of the Women's March. I don't know if she still is, but I assume so.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 10:06 AM on January 16, 2017 [4 favorites]

"We believe that Women’s Rights are Human Rights and Human Rights are Women’s Rights. We must create a society in which women - including Black women, Native women, poor women, immigrant women, Muslim women, lesbian queer and trans women - are free and able to care for and nurture their families, however they are formed, in safe and healthy environments free from structural impediments. "

And disabled women, where do they fit into this list?

I was happy to see poor women included but equally nonplussed to see disability not initially recognized, given the disability caucus has been active since early in the game. This seems to have since been amended, at least on the website:

Unity Principles:

DISABILITY RIGHTS

We believe that all women’s issues are issues faced by women with disabilities and Deaf women. As mothers, sisters, daughters, and contributing members of this great nation, we seek to break barriers to access, inclusion, independence, and the full enjoyment of citizenship at home and around the world. We strive to be fully included in and contribute to all aspects of American life, economy, and culture.

I'm marching for Helen Keller too.
posted by blue suede stockings at 10:14 AM on January 16, 2017 [8 favorites]

I'm headed there with another nonbinary compatriot, meeting some friends in the city. I'm very nervous about the logistics, even though we plan on parking at the park-n-ride furthest from the city, and taking the metro in.

Do note that police have instituted some bag rules! So if you're planning on coming check that out, I'd hate for anyone to lose their day's rations over the size of the bag.

I have been thinking about a sign to carry, and I think the Ida B Wells quote from the AskMe really accurately portrays WHY I want to march. I'd also been struggling with how to highlight black women's voices without speaking for them, and this is a good solution.

The back of the sign will probably say something like (but please memail me w suggestions)

THIS IS NOT NORMAL
RALLY! RESIST!
posted by FirstMateKate at 10:23 AM on January 16, 2017 [4 favorites]

Definitely also be advised that you can be turned away if your sign is considered to have a handle that looks like it could be used as a weapon. Going without a sign is better.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 10:24 AM on January 16, 2017 [3 favorites]

If interested, Lower East Side Girls Club is looking for donations to send girls down.

(the bag size is really tiny! but it sounds like you can just carry lunch in regular plastic shopping bag?)
posted by armacy at 10:26 AM on January 16, 2017 [3 favorites]

We'll be marching here in Birmingham, AL. Wearing appropriate shirts.
posted by BitterOldPunk at 10:35 AM on January 16, 2017 [6 favorites]

I'll be marching in DC, coming down on one of the buses from NJ. I'll be in my clergy collar (sadly I don't have time to bedazzle it). I know at least 3 clergy friends from NJ who will be in DC. Many more will be in NYC or in Trenton.
posted by Stynxno at 10:40 AM on January 16, 2017 [9 favorites]

My wife and 12-year-old daughter are flying to DC to march for our family. We also donated to a scholarship fund to help with travel costs to those that cannot afford it.

Resistance to this starts immediately. Please participate in saving our democracy, it really is at risk.
posted by mcstayinskool at 10:42 AM on January 16, 2017 [9 favorites]

For what it's worth, I don't think the unity principles are perfect, either. The thing that stood out most strongly in its absence to me and my partner when we read them yesterday was the lack of a stand for maternity/parental leave, in part because we are looking at having children in a year or two and that is something that is on our minds.

But that being said, I do have to point out that the perfect is the enemy of good. I am choosing to consider the way that the organizers have responded to criticism by broadening their agenda as a good sign, even if there are omissions now. After all, this thing was constructed and put together in just over two months. Omissions will happen. That doesn't mean that a large event like this isn't a valuable opportunity to talk about those issues, to raise awareness about injustices that matter to you, and to make connections with other marchers that can be used to build organizations for change later.

The way I am thinking of the march, of course it isn't the end all be all of activism. It can't cover everything at once. But for many of the folks marching, it is a beginning. As beginnings go, this is far better than what I for one initially expected.
posted by sciatrix at 10:44 AM on January 16, 2017 [62 favorites]

I'm sorry I dithered about going. At first it looked like a white-feminist fest and/or circular firing squad, but now it looks like despite all of that it is shaping up to be extraordinary. I plan to march in Montpelier, although it's a "unity rally" more than a protest. The place is so decent that the cops probably didn't all vote for Trump.

Due to traveling logistics, I don't think I have time to make a proper big sign, and I'll have to settle for something I can print. I'd like to carry DOWN WITH THIS SORT OF THING, just to make people smile, but I'll probably decide on a colorful graphic instead.
posted by Countess Elena at 10:44 AM on January 16, 2017 [8 favorites]

To back up sciatrix's points: please liberals, don't eat your own.
posted by mcstayinskool at 10:47 AM on January 16, 2017 [65 favorites]

I will be marching in Sacramento, with some friends I know and among friends I haven't met yet. We will have a few hats, thanks to awesome Mefi knitters. If anyone else is in Sacramento, mefi mail me.
posted by routergirl at 10:47 AM on January 16, 2017 [3 favorites]

I'm still brainstorming for sign ideas, but I'll be there in DC with my partner! So, uh, meetup?
posted by a hat out of hell at 10:50 AM on January 16, 2017 [3 favorites]

I'm headed to the one in LA! Any other Mefites going? Mefi mail me if so!
posted by yasaman at 11:01 AM on January 16, 2017 [5 favorites]

Does anybody know if sticks to hold signs are also forbidden in Boston? Thanks.
posted by pangolin party at 11:10 AM on January 16, 2017

After the election my mother was depressed and felt like a lot of others, simply beat down. My brother made a statement that put it all into perspective for us. "You burned bras and marched until you got women's rights codified, marched until they brought sons home from Vietnam and stopped bombing Vietnamese children, marched and fought Nixion out of office. We don't fight because we win, we fight because someone has to hold the line against the BS and the bullies and the small mindedness of people too scared to see beyond themselves. And you taught us that. And now it's our job to start teaching our kids how to do that."

My wife is going to Washington and I will be taking both my girls to the local Portland march. I see it as my duty to teach my girls that we were lucky with people in power who fought against discrimination for us, but now that work falls on our shoulders. This march is the beginning of that work, and I'll be proud to show my kids all the people that will be working to oppose any attack on the rights and liberties of themselves and others, and what we can do to fight.

Also, my kids love our fight song, which I suspect is going to become a political anthem for a generation of women.
posted by herda05 at 11:14 AM on January 16, 2017 [38 favorites]

People who are saying they are sad or conflicted about missing the march: Don't worry! I am sure that there will be many many many, oh so very many more opportunities to protest.
posted by staggering termagant at 11:25 AM on January 16, 2017 [15 favorites]

I wish I could be there, but I couldn't handle a march like this any more than I could handle New Year's Eve in Times Square. Thanks, ArbitraryAndCapricious, for posting the NARAL sponsorship link. I made my donation yesterday. It's the least I could do. Everyone else, go out there and make me proud.
posted by Faint of Butt at 11:27 AM on January 16, 2017 [6 favorites]

Vilissa Thompson is my go-to on the intersection of women, women of color, and women with disability. She was fairly critical of the Women's March. I don't know if she still is, but I assume so.

At first it looked like a white-feminist fest

I *was* going to go to the one in DC. I was thrilled because I have enough airline miles as well as lots of hotel points that I could have gone there and back 4-5 times, so it was basically free. This was early on, as it was starting to get rolled out. Then I read that first observation/critique (of many, it turns out) stressing on or just generally commenting about the lack of diversity in the march. About all the women who would love to go and didn't have the means, emotionally, financially, physically, what have you. I'm pretty sure it was here. . .? And reader, I was so fucking ashamed about being excited about my "free" trip to do this - of my goddamn privilege.

It really made me examine why I was marching. In the end I contacted some local organizers and talked to some other people - then gave away all of my airline miles and hotel points to 4 other women who couldn't otherwise go and who aren't middle-class white women like myself. It's a pretty diverse group! Now I'm just going to one in Colorado. I want to stress I don't want it to sound like I'm bragging or expect cookies; I'm still ashamed of myself. I just want to push a thanks out into the universe to whomever made the comment because they essentially quadrupled one woman's participation as well as added immeasurable to its diversity. Who knows what ripple effects will come from that? So thank you, person!
posted by barchan at 11:30 AM on January 16, 2017 [125 favorites]

I'm marching in St Pete, FL with my Dad and any other family members we can scrape up!
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 11:33 AM on January 16, 2017 [3 favorites]

White middle class over-50 feminist here, with semi-visible disabilities.

I have always been able to avail myself of decent reproductive care. When I got pregnant I had as true a choice as anyone ever does about whether I would carry that pregnancy to term. I was fortunate in that I did NOT have to be forced into bearing a child or running the risk of impoverishment by raising that child as a single parent.

I'm marching primarily for women whose reproductive rights are in danger or are in effect nonexistent because of their state of residence or the people around them who dictate what they can and cannot do.

And there are so, so many other reasons to march.

Finally, I will be meeting some great people IRL whom I know online today.
posted by Sheydem-tants at 11:38 AM on January 16, 2017 [11 favorites]

My 70-something mother will be marching in Santa Fe. She lives for things like this.
posted by Thorzdad at 11:41 AM on January 16, 2017 [14 favorites]

If you can't go yourself, would you like me to carry your name, Faint of Butt? I have been thinking about that--finding a place on my sign, when I work out what to say and how to say it, to write the names of people who want to be there and cannot be, to remind us that they're here in spirit, since I had that exchange with Excommunicated Cardinal the other day. I am thinking about who I march for and what I am standing for, and having a tangible reminder of that thing feels right to me. (Or hell, carrying a list of names on my person. Also good. It's the same thing I feel about the hats--carrying a hat means I am carrying someone else with me as I walk, not walking by myself.)

(I, uh, would be happy to carry either your legal name or just write "Faint of Butt" on a list and let other folks try and figure that one out. Appeals to my sense of the absurd, that. Feel free to MeMail me, anyone who wants a name to go with me.)

barchan--ha, I hear you. *slow breath* I needed help to get there myself, and I felt pretty guilty about that, because what if someone else who was worse off could have gone in my place? Still do. I would have gone anyway, even though we can't/couldn't really afford the travel*; I have family there and my gran is putting me up, and I know she is delighted to have me visiting. And I--selfishly, I wanted to show my spouse the closest thing I have to a home town, I wanted to show off the museums I cut my teeth on and the things I value about the history of my nation and the beliefs I carried with me. I wanted to remind myself what I am fighting for.

I come down on the side of thinking that it's--I come down on the side of forgiving myself for that selfishness, I think, because I would have gone and just sucked up the increasing debt anyway, and because there is no one else who could take up the place we are borrowing to stay. And because our flight is the cheapest and shittiest Spirit Airlines flight we could find, and because I have been trying to spread scholarship funds for college kids who need a hand around, too.

But I wrestle with that. There are a contingent of about ten other grad students in my department who are marching here in Austin, and I do ask myself why I felt so strongly that I needed to haul myself down to DC and be there, and the hell with anything that got in my way.

_{*I had a gofundme, and folks donated--including several folks from here, for which I am eternally grateful.}
posted by sciatrix at 11:50 AM on January 16, 2017 [14 favorites]

I'm in Houston but made plans to go to the Austin March weeks ago. Planners are expecting over 20K from around the state. Then Houston starts planning a march pretty much just last week. They're already expecting 6K to go to that. It's blowing up by the hour, more people RSVP and share on social media. Dallas has a similar march they are getting together late with numbers growing quickly. This is going be an interesting day.

They tried to bury us They didn't know WE WERE SEEDS.
posted by dog food sugar at 11:51 AM on January 16, 2017 [49 favorites]

My mom and 8 busloads of women are driving from Charlottesville to DC. I'll be at the SF one with rtha and friends.

A friend is working on a documentary and looking for LGBT folks organizing in rural areas to go to DC - if that's you, mefi mail me!
posted by gingerbeer at 11:52 AM on January 16, 2017 [7 favorites]

My 70-something mother will be marching in Santa Fe. She lives for things like this.

Zozobra is gonna be something else this year, I'm guessing.
posted by azpenguin at 11:58 AM on January 16, 2017 [2 favorites]

They tried to bury us They didn't know WE WERE SEEDS.
posted by dog food sugar at 12:51 PM on January 16

Those of you looking for sign ideas... there's a perfect one.
posted by azpenguin at 11:59 AM on January 16, 2017 [22 favorites]

It's the t-shirt for the Austin March!
posted by dog food sugar at 12:03 PM on January 16, 2017 [5 favorites]

Going to Austin with a car full of uppity women. And just found out I'm driving :( so any tips on parking in Austin are GREATLY APPRECIATED.
posted by emjaybee at 12:09 PM on January 16, 2017 [4 favorites]

This is all undercut by the Clinton's (jail her; liar, etc) attending the inauguration, lending it a conventional and peaceful exchange of leadership.
posted by Postroad at 12:11 PM on January 16, 2017

I'll be marching with my family in Indianapolis. In college we made the overnight+ drive to DC many times but with kids it just isn't feasible. When they are old enough to read in the car we'll probably do it, and I'm sure that there will still be many, many things to protest at that time.
posted by ChrisHartley at 12:13 PM on January 16, 2017 [2 favorites]

This is all undercut by the Clinton's (jail her; liar, etc) attending the inauguration, lending it a conventional and peaceful exchange of leadership.

No it's not. These are totally orthogonal to each other.
posted by biogeo at 12:25 PM on January 16, 2017 [28 favorites]

Uh, lessee, re parking tips in downtown Austin for emjaybee:

-There are quite a few garages downtown if you'll need them, near-ish to the Capitol. If you can't get parking near the Capitol itself, try going south a little and checking for parking spots there. There is also public parking under I-35, between the frontages, near--I want to say 15th St that you could probably use.
-You can search for parking near the Capitol on Waze, if you use that app to get around.
-The university has public garages, too, but they are probably real shitty on pricing and then you would definitely need to catch a bus downtown. However, there are a whole lot of bus lines downtown that go through the university. If you are planning to park somewhere far-ish from the Capitol and take a bus closer in, try to be on the 801 or 803 lines, which are easily the fastest and most reliable in my experience. Both of them go right through downtown. They are a touch pricier but for something like this I find it's worth it. Also: free wi-fi, which can be handy in a pinch if you are traveling.
-If you are planning to park further out and grab a cab closer in, remember that Austin does not have Uber or Lyft. I recommend RideAustin, which is a local not-for-profit rideshare app that tries to get most of any profits going to the drivers. I would encourage you to have that app ready ahead of time if you think you might need it.
-I'm beginning to see more city parking meters that request your car's license plate so you can't just feed the meter and come back or something. You might wanna have that info on you when you feed the meter if you park somewhere that has one, possibly.
-Be careful about where you park; Austin has some really vicious towing rules, much stricter than I was used to coming from the Atlanta and Athens GA areas. If it says don't park there between certain hours, really do not park there unless you are fine with picking up your car from impound.

Any of that helpful?
posted by sciatrix at 12:28 PM on January 16, 2017 [8 favorites]

The statue of limitations on blaming everything on Clinton still hasn't expired?
posted by the thorn bushes have roses at 12:28 PM on January 16, 2017 [54 favorites]

Does anybody know if sticks to hold signs are also forbidden in Boston? Thanks.

My experience is that they have been counted as weapons whenever police wanted to count them as weapons wherever marches were held. I would avoid them.
posted by corb at 12:32 PM on January 16, 2017 [8 favorites]

I'll be marching in Vancouver, Canada. Wish it wasn't necessary but warmed to see the breadth of response from right-thinking folks around the world.
posted by HoteDoge at 12:32 PM on January 16, 2017 [5 favorites]

Pool noodles are sometimes suggested as non-weaponizable sign supports.
posted by Lexica at 12:35 PM on January 16, 2017 [9 favorites]

Do pool noodles work? I would think they would be too noodle-y to hold up a sign. I might swing by the sporting-goods store to see if they have any.
posted by ArbitraryAndCapricious at 12:43 PM on January 16, 2017 [1 favorite]

I'm in a similar boat as a few people here; can't go to DC, and also can't donate $$ - I'm in school. But, I've been doing protesting/activism for a long time, so here's some ideas.

Things To Do If You Can't March/Donate - Some Ideas. By spinifex23:

1. See if there's a local march you can plug into.
2. Monitor social media, and forward on/share FB posts/tweets/blog posts.
3. Write your own FB posts/tweets/blog posts.
4. Attend a sign making party and make signs for other marchers.
5. Make/knit hats for other marchers.
6. If you know an area well, help with logistics - suggest to marchers where to park, how to navigate the transit system, what restaurants are in the area that are good to eat in, etc.
7. Spend the day consuming women-made media - read books written by women authors, etc. That's what a friend is going to do with her toddler son, who is not one for crowds.

I'm sure others can chime in with ideas as well.
posted by spinifex23 at 12:45 PM on January 16, 2017 [8 favorites]

See y'all in Lansing. I'll be the angry one.
posted by Etrigan at 12:47 PM on January 16, 2017 [17 favorites]

They tried to bury us They didn't know WE WERE SEEDS.
posted by dog food sugar at 12:51 PM on January 16

Those of you looking for sign ideas... there's a perfect one.
posted by azpenguin at 2:59 PM on January 16 [7 favorites +] [!]

That's an often quoted, rarely attributed phrase, so please attribute if you can!! It was Dinos Christianopoulos, a Greek poet in the 70s, in response to his writing being marginalized because of his homosexuality (makes the misattribution even more poignant). I'm not trying to argue who/where/how people can use the quote, but as a fellow gay it held more meaning for me after I learned that. There's a little bit of gay history for you! ❤️️
posted by FirstMateKate at 12:52 PM on January 16, 2017 [88 favorites]

My experience is that they have been counted as weapons whenever police wanted to count them as weapons wherever marches were held.

It's only fair. All the police will be able to use is harsh language, right?
posted by Gelatin at 12:56 PM on January 16, 2017 [4 favorites]

Likewise, I'm home watching the toddler twins, who are still a bit young for marches, but I donated to the NARAL sponsorship link. Thanks to everyone marching! You're an inspiration.
posted by Existential Dread at 1:01 PM on January 16, 2017 [4 favorites]

I'm trying to decide if I should go to the smaller one in my city or make the hour drive to the bigger city and thus the slightly bigger March. I'm not sure if bulking up the numbers locally is better visibility or if I should join the bigger group because the city is more known nationally. Any ideas? A friend plans to go to both but I'm not sure I can.
posted by PussKillian at 1:16 PM on January 16, 2017 [1 favorite]

PussKillian, go local!! If there is ever any opportunity to show a local place that there are people who care, that is always a good idea. You never know, there might be someone out there who wants to participate or even start events like this locally, but they don't know if there's any interest. If they see people showing up in their home town, they could get involved. You have a better chance of making a long-term impact by showing support locally.
posted by FirstMateKate at 1:19 PM on January 16, 2017 [9 favorites]

Thanks sciatrix, that is EXTREMELY helpful, I have learned through harsh experience to always get parking info from a local, not a website/app/random person who went there once.

I have some leftover Christmas wrapping tubes I think I will use to hold up my sign.

My sign:

WOMEN WILL NEVER STOP RESISTING

Mostly because (long story here) when I was a kid, I was always distressed at the lack of women who had done cool things in history. (Now I know that they were there, but erased.) Also I felt shame that women apparently had always let men win like we were weak or something. There were no successful rebellions or heroes to point to. I was constantly told that women were weak and that's why men were able to push us around. Lack of Upper Body Strength as destiny.

BUT. As an adult, I realized that there was PLENTY of evidence of women resisting and succeeding. It was erased from history, but it's there...in the laws. Every law that says "Women can't do X" or "Women must do Y" or "Women must keep out of [profession/role]" is there specifically because women were doing those things. Women have ALWAYS done those things; if we hadn't there would be no need for laws to stop us doing them. If we were truly passive and weak, it would not take the marshalled forces of the Powers That Be to keep us down. But it does. The Powers That Be know: we are dangerous. That's why it fights back so hard on things that seem so sensible and positive, like birth control; women are dangerous and the powers that be are afraid of us.

And they should be. We have always fought. We will always fight. It's in our nature.
posted by emjaybee at 1:43 PM on January 16, 2017 [28 favorites]

So, anyone hitting up the (varied) NYC protests? The Tuesday at Trump Tower one?
posted by The Whelk at 1:55 PM on January 16, 2017 [1 favorite]

Spaceman, bluesuede, sciatrix, and others: About whether this march is inclusive or the platform is right ... I thought it was the authors of the indivisible guide who made this point, but now I can't find it there, but anyway, somebody did: the bad guys won this last election because they joined together, and they accept anybody who will help. The other side is not being fussy. That multiplies their effect. Christ — conservative Christians voted for Trump, en masse. What the hell were they thinking? My best guess is they were thinking, "Let's do this."

The indivisible guide did make this point: "

DIVERSITY IN YOUR GROUP & REACHING OUT

Trump’s agenda explicitly targets immigrants, Muslims, people of color, LGBTQ people, the poor and working class, and women. It is critical that our resistance reflect and center the voices of those who are most directly threatened by the Trump agenda. If you are forming a group, we urge you to make a conscious effort to pursue diversity and solidarity at every stage in the process. Being inclusive and diverse might include recruiting members who can bridge language gaps, and finding ways to accommodate participation when people can’t attend due to work schedules, health issues, or childcare needs.

In addition, where there are local groups already organizing around the rights of those most threatened by the Trump agenda, we urge you to reach out to partner with them, amplify their voices, and defer to their leadership.


And at another point:
"NOTE ON SAFETY AND PRIVILEGE

We do not yet know how Trump supporters will respond to organized shows of opposition, but we have seen enough to be very concerned that minorities will be targeted or singled out. Plan your actions to ensure that no one is asked to take on a role that they are not comfortable with — especially those roles that call for semi-confrontational behavior — and be mindful of the fact that not everyone is facing an equal level of threat. Members of your group who enjoy more privilege should think carefully about how they can ensure that they are using their privilege to support other members of the group. If you are concerned about potential law enforcement intimidation, consider downloading your state’s version of the ACLU Mobile Justice app to ensure that any intimidating behavior is captured on film."

I see where this formulation also leaves out any mention of disability. I'm a privileged white male and a US Army veteran, temporarily able bodied, agile, mobile, and aware. I'm going to the march in Washington to support the movement (and my one true love), not to define it. I just plan to bring the love. Since I know I'm not a target, I view myself as a shield. If anybody has input on the role of a guy like me at this point, I'm paying attention. And thanks for the reminder to add disability to the list.

(Rainbow sign, rainbow ribbon. No stick.)
posted by Beginner's Mind at 1:58 PM on January 16, 2017 [18 favorites]

sciatrix: If you can't go yourself, would you like me to carry your name, Faint of Butt?

I am not in the US and unable to travel back for this. There is also no march in my small city. I would be honoured and grateful to the point of bawling if someone would write my name in the tiniest, lightest pencil on the edge of a poster and carry me to Washington so I can be there even in the most insignificant way.

This feels like such a generous, ingenious idea!
posted by DarlingBri at 1:58 PM on January 16, 2017 [19 favorites]

Marching locally. Knitting a hat this week. I should have been knitting hats for weeks, but I screwed up.
posted by greermahoney at 2:23 PM on January 16, 2017 [3 favorites]

I don't do well with crowds and noise on my best days and I recognize that this sort of thing is probably not safe to do while on my anxiety meds, especially not alone, so I'm probably not doing my local one. But for everybody who's going, whether to DC or to anything local to you, I think you're amazing, and it means a lot to know how many of you are doing so much right now. This is the sort of thing that's going a long way to making the world seem like it's not just a permanent pit of suck. I'm throwing what little money I have available right now at the Omaha organizers, to help where I can.
posted by Sequence at 2:35 PM on January 16, 2017 [9 favorites]

I am, admittedly, an old jaundiced old man. That said, and though my wife is marching in NY and my daughter in DC, when the day is over. Trump will be the new president; Congress and the Senate will be controlled by the GOP; much that Obama put in place will be taken away. What, then, comes next for those unhappy with Orange Julius and Exitsanity regime?
posted by Postroad at 2:41 PM on January 16, 2017

The weather is actually not going to be horrible for marching in St. Paul!
posted by dinty_moore at 2:44 PM on January 16, 2017 [6 favorites]

Beginner's mind (and others): I'm not saying this is reason not to march. I'm not saying that this negates everything the women's march is.

But if we can't critique our own side's work, we'll never improve. And if we leave people behind because we can't improve, then why are we here at all?
posted by spaceman_spiff at 2:46 PM on January 16, 2017 [2 favorites]

and don't forget: this doesn't end just at the march. plug into your local grassroots movements too! there is so much work that needs to be done

that said, get your head on right before you dive in, too. don't center yourself or your self-professed expertise. if a PoC-led group is choosing to go one way, you go with them. 99% of the time they've already considered your idea and have discarded it. it's almost every day that there isn't some older white person who commandeers PoC-led activist spaces. keep an open mind

and don't just get involved with party politics or bigger corporate non-profits right off the bat, not at least until you know that they're working hard to represent people's best interests. there's two extremes in the non-profit world: groups getting barely any funding to do necessary but unpopular work who can't afford a dedicated grant-writer and reporter, and groups getting a ton of funding who aren't really held accountable to their grants and dedicate more resources to managing their cashflow than they do actual, self-directed work. and party politics, that's a mixed bag of everything

in any case, an extremely incomplete list of guides and movements below!

Indivisible: A Practical Guide for Resisting the Trump Agenda
The Movement for Black Lives
Showing Up for Racial Justice
Fight for $15
Southerners on New Ground

if you want to know more about activists in Georgia, hit me up! otherwise my list is highly incomplete
posted by runt at 3:03 PM on January 16, 2017 [15 favorites]

I am about 80% sure I am going to carry my plastic Captain America shield and a sign that says "NO, YOU MOVE" and I just need to squash the remaining 20% that says it's too unserious. Because first of all, fascists hate being laughed at, second of all, Captain America hates fascists, and third of all I think telling myself I'm a superhero might be how i get through the next four years.
posted by nonasuch at 3:06 PM on January 16, 2017 [44 favorites]

Many Americans do not vote. Many vote ONLY for presidential elections, every 4 years. To bring change: vote in a new Congress. Vote every election. YOU are change. Want Hope? Don't mope
posted by Postroad at 3:17 PM on January 16, 2017 [4 favorites]

_{psst, nonasuch, one of the first things I did to motivate myself was find a great big Captain America shield button to put on my canvas bag, for pretty much all the same reasons you cite. If you're too silly, so am I; so come over here and be silly with me! Don't be ashamed of whatever symbols bring you strength.}
posted by sciatrix at 3:22 PM on January 16, 2017 [14 favorites]

second of all, Captain America hates fascists

I dunno, man, I heard a rumor --
posted by Countess Elena at 3:23 PM on January 16, 2017 [4 favorites]

I'm marching in DC. It hadn't been my plan to do so, but my mother wanted to be there, and although she is equal to many things, she overestimates her strength at times. And if anything goes some other way than it should, she and the group we're traveling with could use my help. Several are mobility challenged and others are just not 25 anymore (not 50 or 60 either). I love them all dearly so it's going to be great fun to march alongside them.

We're not doing signs, but they are wearing their clerical stoles and collars and rainbow sashes, etc. I ordered a custom shirt I've been wanting to have made ever since the Wall was suggested. If it doesn't arrive in time, I'll probably go rainbow with tye-dye. I'm also bringing a few pairs of swim goggles on the off chance of teargas, because who knows.

I'm really hoping there will be opportunities to sing together. Has anybody heard anything like that discussed?

Afterwards the National Museum of the American Indian is hosting the Out of Many festival (details here, Saturday and Sunday) which sounds like a good way of celebrating the sentiment of Take Your Wall and Shove It.
posted by notquitemaryann at 3:24 PM on January 16, 2017 [11 favorites]

I just have to get this out of my system because I was once twenty-five and full of piss and vinegar and when the organizers of the march warned that maybe Giuliani would break with tradition and send us to the Tombs, I was like *sounds fun* and for a while it was really fun! And then it became incredibly traumatic for some people who were caught w/o access to their medication and to this day I am haunted by the fact that I went tra-la-laing into a situation where a bunch of folks suffered badly, but I did not, so with each big protest I feel like I need to say this:

Please be safe and careful. Please realize that some nasty racist/ableist/sexist shit probably will be screamed at some point. Please follow recommendations of march organizers. Please take these recommendations seriously.

I'm not saying don't go (and I'll see you there). I'm just saying be careful.
posted by angrycat at 3:34 PM on January 16, 2017 [17 favorites]

If there is any non-violent resistance training you can attend before any of the marches, please do so. I'm on my way out the door to such a training right now. (Salem, MA, UU Church, 7 - 9 pm).
posted by Sheydem-tants at 3:37 PM on January 16, 2017 [3 favorites]

Thank you for this. I will be in DC for Friday and Saturday. Ready to go.
posted by glaucon at 4:12 PM on January 16, 2017 [1 favorite]

So, anyone hitting up the (varied) NYC protests? The Tuesday at Trump Tower one?

I'll be at the women's march on Saturday with my girlfriend, two daughters and assorted co-workers.
posted by freakazoid at 4:18 PM on January 16, 2017 [1 favorite]

I'll be stuck at home with two small children, but anyone who wants to write "potrzebie" on a sign will delight any old-school Mad magazine fans who happen to be in attendance. I'll be there in spirit. Onward and upward, sisters and comrades.
posted by potrzebie at 4:19 PM on January 16, 2017 [7 favorites]

idk im pretty sure i could melee the fuck out of some dude with a pool noodle
posted by poffin boffin at 4:27 PM on January 16, 2017 [21 favorites]

Where I used to live, there were SCA folks who would dress up in full armor and do just that. Now I wish we had some knights coming along.
posted by notquitemaryann at 4:33 PM on January 16, 2017 [2 favorites]

My wife and I will be at a rally in Albuquerque with a recently formed Indivisible group.
posted by maurreen at 4:36 PM on January 16, 2017 [4 favorites]

I'll be in DC for this march. Just last summer I moved away after living there for a dozen years, but after attending the march for women's health in '04, the peace marches in '05 and '07, and Obama's first inauguration in '09, I'm not going to miss this one for anything. My sign will read, I think, PROVE LOVE, inspired by our recent thread about Chuck Tingle. Around the edges I will scribe the usernames of any MeFites who desire to be so represented.
posted by The Nutmeg of Consolation at 4:58 PM on January 16, 2017 [10 favorites]

Just got off the phone with my 74 year old mother who has decided she needs to work on her stamina before joining me in marches, but I'm taking the 9 year old nephew (and his dad) who just finished John Lewis' March and is interested in going.
posted by crush-onastick at 4:58 PM on January 16, 2017 [2 favorites]

Where I used to live, there were SCA folks who would dress up in full armor and do just that. Now I wish we had some knights coming along.
posted by notquitemaryann at 7:33 PM on January 16

I just think you should know that I read this a little too fast, and my brain glitched on "knights." Therefore, ever after in my imagination, these knights will be wearing pink knitted chain mail to the protest. Knitters, please get right on that.
posted by instamatic at 5:09 PM on January 16, 2017 [4 favorites]

I'm wondering what the folks from Oakland are doing... is there an IRL or meetup planned?
posted by waitangi at 5:12 PM on January 16, 2017

I am not a knight but would wear the heck out of that
posted by notquitemaryann at 5:17 PM on January 16, 2017

Boston marchers represent!

Considering a sign that says: "moms will RAISE the resistance" because while I can't take my kids with me because they are way too little they are my main motivation for marching. Fuck if I leave them a shitty world without doing everything I can to fight it.
posted by lydhre at 5:29 PM on January 16, 2017 [10 favorites]

I'm going to DC! Leaving my 19 month old daughter (for only the 2nd time!) with her daddy and her grandma (who are going to bring her to the local march.)

I may be a white woman of privilege in many ways, but it's still a big deal for this mama to go 8 hours away for the weekend without her little girl to do this. It feels like I HAVE to go do this, though, and I'm so glad I have the family support to make it happen.
posted by Rocket26 at 5:33 PM on January 16, 2017 [6 favorites]

I'm going to DC, carpooling down with three friends, staying in a hotel out by BWI. I know so many people from Maine/Massachusetts/New York going, I think the crowd is going to be bigger than the 200K they're predicting.
posted by banjo_and_the_pork at 5:40 PM on January 16, 2017 [4 favorites]

I just posted a meetup to IRL for the San Francisco march. Hubby and I hope to see some familiar faces there!
posted by Quietgal at 5:47 PM on January 16, 2017 [3 favorites]

I will be in St. Paul!
posted by triggerfinger at 6:22 PM on January 16, 2017 [5 favorites]

If you don't know who the Sylvia Riviera in the post's title was, let me say that she was awesome. Sylvia was a transgender person of color who expressed a fluid personal identification of gender. She started wearing make up as a child in the 50s and left home at age 11 to be the person she wanted to be, even though that included police beatings and working as a prostitute while living on the street. She and her dear friend Marsha P. Johnson were among the most important figures who instigated the Stonewall Riots, where the LGBTQ community stood up to society who emphatically communicated the message we are not worthy of participating in society. She took beatings and faced intense mockery and ridicule to express her authentic self.

Sylvia was fighting against trans erasure by certain parts of the gay/lesbian community up until her death in 2001 and for trans rights long before the word 'transgender' entered the common lexicon. She is a true heroine and is to this day an inspiration for all of us but especially trans people. In the worst moments of the last months, sometimes the thought that "Sylvia and Marsha would never give up" has pulled me back to functionality.

(sciatrix: Thank you for including Sylvia in the post's title. You've just been on righteous fire this week <3.)
posted by Excommunicated Cardinal at 6:25 PM on January 16, 2017 [28 favorites]

Marching in Sydney Australia.
posted by lipservant at 6:31 PM on January 16, 2017 [3 favorites]

I'm thinking I'll just forgo the sign and Sharpie THIS MACHINE KILLS FASCISTS around the outside edge of the shield.
posted by nonasuch at 6:31 PM on January 16, 2017 [6 favorites]

My daughters and I plan to march in St. Paul. Current forecast is for rain, and I hate rain, but I do not care. I'm marching.
posted by padraigin at 6:31 PM on January 16, 2017 [5 favorites]

It is very likely the wife and I (and two little ones) will be attending the one in Fernandina Beach. I expect it to be sleepy and dry (and probably less liberal leaning [non-partisan I know I know]) than most. Wish us luck.
posted by RolandOfEld at 6:31 PM on January 16, 2017 [2 favorites]

My mother and sister are coming down for the march in San Antonio. We were going to do the Austin march, but my mother is old and stiff so she decided she'd rather attend the smaller march here than drive the two hours to Austin. Me, my partner, our son, my sister, and my mother are all going, we will have Pink Pussy Hats.

*****************

Some general advice that shouldn't be necessary but is in my experience: BE PREPARED TO BE ARRESTED Hopefully you won't be. Most protesters aren't. But anticipate arrest and take only what you are willing to lose, because if you count on the cops giving you your stuff back you'll probably be disappointed. Empty your bag before you go, put into it only the things you don't mind losing, or can afford to replace. If you usually carry a multitool or pocket knife, don't. Take only the bare necessities for the march.

Most importantly: do not take any illegal drugs, or anything else illegal, with you. I've heard of a simple protest arrest that was going to be catch and release that turned into a drug conviction because the guy had a joint in his wallet.

Don't even take your prescription drugs if you can avoid it, don't give the cops any excuse to hassle you.

If you're prepared to be arrested, if you've anticipated it and aren't loaded with stuff you can't afford to lose, or stuff that will get you in trouble, you're ahead of the game.

With any luck these protests will be perfectly fine, the cops won't be aggressive, they won't kettle us and bust us by the thousands like they sometimes do. But you can't count on that.

*****************

Tech advice: If you're taking your phone (and you may not want to) sign up for a streaming service before you go. Video evidence of police brutality that is just on your phone can, and probably will, be wiped by the cops. Video that's out on the web is a lot harder to kill. Also remember, cops these days react to phones as if they were almost as threatening as guns, pulling out your phone to take video will get you targeted so be prepared for that too.

Even Facebook live is better than nothing, but it's better to sign up for twitch, or uplay, or one of the other free streaming services. You might also want to look into the ACLU app for your state, which will stream the video straight to ACLU servers and they're pretty unlikely to delete it at police request.
posted by sotonohito at 6:37 PM on January 16, 2017 [13 favorites]

I'm going to the Chicago march. Any other MeFites going?
posted by SisterHavana at 6:42 PM on January 16, 2017 [2 favorites]

Several of my friends are going to the DC march. It wasn't feasible for me to do that, so I'm glad there will be a local march.
posted by SisterHavana at 6:49 PM on January 16, 2017 [2 favorites]

I'll be marching in DC because it is my local march. Please remember, those of you coming in from out of town, that nearly 700,000 people without senators or representatives or much control over our own laws or budget live here. It's not going to be a good four years for anyone, but residents of the district are working with an additional level of difficulty. Please spend money at local businesses, please try not to leave garbage around (large gatherings often leave the place trashed), and please, while you're calling your reps and senators, tell them to support DC voting rights!
posted by everybody had matching towels at 6:52 PM on January 16, 2017 [31 favorites]

I'll be at the Philadelphia march! The organizers just posted on Facebook that they're expecting 30-40k people if the weather holds. A few days ago it was 8k.
posted by kalimac at 6:59 PM on January 16, 2017 [6 favorites]

This advice and commentary is moving me to tears. I'm heading to DC Friday afternoon, spending the night at my daughter's house and then marching Saturday with her and her friends and roommates.

I'd be proud to add your name to their signs, which is what i'm doing with my sister's name since she can't make it. Faint of Butt? I thought i saw another requesting to be listed but I can't find it. If you have real names if you want to message me those names, or anything else.
posted by etaoin at 7:06 PM on January 16, 2017 [4 favorites]

I've been grateful for very little this fall, but I am grateful that I live close enough to DC that I can fill my house with protesters. The cynic in my wonders if it will make a difference.
posted by oryelle at 7:12 PM on January 16, 2017 [5 favorites]

It is really emotional reading all the places people are marching. I'm getting a little tearful too etaoin! We are a united power to be reckoned with! Thank you all you wonderful people!
posted by dog food sugar at 7:16 PM on January 16, 2017 [4 favorites]

Because I haven't seen this anywhere and it's so important- just in case you do get arrested, write the number of the person who will be bailing you out in Sharpie on your arm. The cops will probably not give you back your cellphone before you make your call, and if you don't have that number memorized, you're in for a very long night.
posted by corb at 7:31 PM on January 16, 2017 [12 favorites]

DC is my home, but I will actually be in Madison, Wisconsin taking a breather for the inauguration and going to the march there. Thank you to everyone who is making the trip down to DC. You are awesome! DC cops are pretty skillful at handling giant crowds and protests without too much fuss, so it should be a really positive experience.

If you are able, please spend tons of money in our restaurants and bars. A good resource is this ever-growing list of restaurants donating inauguration weekend profits to good causes around DC and nationally. And, yes, when you call your reps and senators, please don't forget to ask about DC voting rights. We are U.S. citizens without any federal representation and with the constant threat of our locally enacted laws being nullified at the whims of the GOP Congress.
posted by fancypants at 7:40 PM on January 16, 2017 [14 favorites]

We're marching in Asheville! I figure it will be pretty chill - I have marched on Pritchard Park many times now and it is usually pretty chill, plus the mayor is marching too, but I am excited. WNC mefites maybe I'll see you there!
posted by mygothlaundry at 7:42 PM on January 16, 2017 [4 favorites]

I'm going to DC, and a lot of people I know are planning to go as well.

Do note the bag rules mentioned upthread; it'd suck if people got their stuff taken away.

The Guardian says it could be the largest demonstration in American history.
posted by escape from the potato planet at 8:04 PM on January 16, 2017 [6 favorites]

We're marching in Denver. I've made signs, and have a stars and stripes rainbow flag, but not sure if I'm bringing it because the local march guidelines aren't so specific about prohibited items. I'm not familiar with the local protest scene (or any protest scene, tbh - this is my first as an adult), so I'm trying to toe the line between pragmatic and paranoid. We're just doing the march because my friend and I will have a toddler in tow, leaving after that. But my mom bailed friends out of mass arrests in RFK stadium as a teenager during the Vietnam War, so I'm kind of glad my husband is considering sleeping in after a week of being on the road for work, just so I know we'll have someone we can call locally if it comes to it.
posted by deludingmyself at 8:09 PM on January 16, 2017 [4 favorites]

I'm marching in Denver too. I have an American flag throw that makes a dandy cape, so I will be wrapped in the flag. Say hi if you see me!
posted by caryatid at 8:38 PM on January 16, 2017 [5 favorites]

I've taken to filming my knitting progress on my hat, on FB Live, as I'm so excited about it. There's also tons of swearing as dropped stitches are now a part of my life.

I cannot wait for it to be finished, and for me to wear it this weekend in Seattle!
posted by spinifex23 at 11:17 PM on January 16, 2017 [1 favorite]

I'll do one very locally Friday (in part to connect with local activists) and will be in LA at Pershing Square Saturday. I expect *a lot* of people there.
posted by professor plum with a rope at 11:51 PM on January 16, 2017 [5 favorites]

I'm bringing a flag with no pole. The right can't have that flag. It belongs to all of us.
posted by professor plum with a rope at 11:57 PM on January 16, 2017 [10 favorites]

Where I used to live, there were SCA folks who would dress up in full armor and do just that. Now I wish we had some knights coming along.

My local SCAdian group is hosting Coronation on the 21st. The current plan is that a bunch of us will be at the local rally in garb.

Crowdsourced question: anyone have suggestions for protest signs for medieval-clad protesters? "Women's rights, not the Dark Ages!" and "The Dark Ages were more enlightened than this!" are two we've thought of.
posted by steady-state strawberry at 4:33 AM on January 17, 2017 [2 favorites]

I'm in Northern Virginia but I won't be going to the DC March: sorry, giant crowds freak me out.

Instead, as I think I mentioned elsewhere, I'll be spending Inauguration Day, Friday/January 20, holding a tiny (current head count: me) anti-racism march at a local mosque, and anyone who would like to join me is welcome --- I could share my signs with you ("No matter where you come from, we're glad you're our neighbors") or you could make your own. MeMail me, I haven't quite decided between which of two mosques I'll be at --- the smaller one (Fairfax Va.) has endured physical vandalism, but the other (Springfield Va.) has a school and it might be good for the kids there to know not everyone thinks they're terrorists just because they're Muslim.
posted by easily confused at 5:38 AM on January 17, 2017 [2 favorites]

Giant crowds freak me out too, but I am planning to go to the St. Paul march (which should be less overwhelming) and drag my apolitical teenage daughter along. I think framing it as a march FOR [women/gay/trans/disabled/minority/worker/etc] rights rather than a march AGAINST the Orange One will work.
posted by Flannery Culp at 5:43 AM on January 17, 2017 [7 favorites]

Chiming in for Raleigh here. The excitement tempered by caution is palpable here. Restaurants that surround Moore Sq have been really receptive & supportive. Steady as she goes.
posted by yoga at 5:59 AM on January 17, 2017 [1 favorite]

Monitor social media, and forward on/share FB posts/tweets/blog posts.

One thing about this - when monitoring, take a moment to verify! It's easy to get swept up in these things, so please be take that extra step to be sure you aren't passing along incorrect information.
posted by everybody had matching towels at 6:29 AM on January 17, 2017 [2 favorites]

anyone have suggestions for protest signs for medieval-clad protesters?

Something like NO KINGS NO TYRANTS or HISTORY MOVES FOWARD NOT BACK
posted by The Whelk at 6:33 AM on January 17, 2017 [9 favorites]

medieval clad protesters protest sign suggestions

How about Game of Thrones references:
"I am the blood of dragons!"
"Fire cannot kill a dragon!"

Or Shakespearian style ( I know - mixed historical periods aside):
Methinks the lady doth need thy knights to protest as well!
If I be waspish best beware my sting! (As You Like It)
Oh time, thou must untangle this... (12th Night)

Apologies to those who knoweth GOT and Shakespeare better than me. Perhaps thou hast better suggestions along these lines!
posted by dog food sugar at 8:28 AM on January 17, 2017 [1 favorite]

Scattered notes for the morning, as I start tracking down a bunch of organizational things and checking in with folks:

-We are now at 59 countries hosting marches, including the US, with a full 616 sister marches planned with an estimated 1.03 million sister marchers. If you feel bad for not being able to get to DC itself or cannot travel but can take the day off and brave some crowds, well. You'll be in damn good company. (If you cannot march at all or otherwise want to be spiritually in DC, my offer to put names on signs is still open. MeMail me so I can have them all in one place and make sure to put exactly the name you want on my list. I currently have something like eighteen names, so it's not like a few more will take up too much more room.)

-If you can't march at all or donate money, also, don't feel bad about it. There will be so many more opportunities to do things to resist. We have a long road ahead of us, and we need many small contributions so that when some folks get run down and exhausted, others can shoulder some load. And marching is not the only thing you can do to help, nor is donating money. Speaking up is just as important, in whatever ways we can, and so is taking care of yourself so that you will be around to help in six months, in a year, in two years. Remember, we need all of you. Put on your own gas mask first, because you'll be no good to anyone if you burn out and can't go on. Take care of yourself. It's important.

If you are in Texas (especially Austin) and still want to go to the DC March, there is a bus that is ten folks short that needs to find people in the next two hours or the bus won't happen. If you can't afford the time but want to help, I bet they would take sponsorship donations; if you can't afford the money but have the time and want to go, I bet you they would be happy to find extra folks to get asses in seats if they can scrounge up some money.

Also, my grandmother, who I have mentioned in election threads in the last few weeks, who has been an organizer for the GOP and worked in the Pentagon since before I was born, who I have honestly been hiding from more than a little over the past ten years because I felt like her politics and mine were too incompatible, and it was too scary to be open and direct about what I believe... that grandmother...

...she, uh, she called yesterday and told me she was excited to have me coming down and she had bought me supplies for the march and clipped out an article about it in the Washington Post for me. So. So that's a thing.

Being loud about our feelings is important, guys. Sometimes there's less pushback than you think.
posted by sciatrix at 8:46 AM on January 17, 2017 [33 favorites]

I'll be in DC with my young daughter, because we both want to march and because I think of this as a critical part of her civic education.

But let's not be too hasty in calling this "one of the largest demonstrations in US history". Lest we forget, on the opposite end of the political spectrum, the March for Life easily draws 200,000 EVERY YEAR (some estimates put it at around 500k last year), and it's happening the weekend after.

This is just the beginning of a very long, hard march that's going to last for at least a decade IMO.
posted by xthlc at 8:52 AM on January 17, 2017 [5 favorites]

I thought the shirt I'd ordered wouldn't arrive until after the march, but it got here yesterday, so me, my shirt and my purple hair are ready to go in Denver.
posted by rewil at 8:54 AM on January 17, 2017 [2 favorites]

Update: Texas bus is happening, they got so many donations that there was actually a significant pile of overflow, and as far as I can tell the prevailing sentiment is to donate the excess to funds to help college kids get to DC, with maybe a spare chunk of the money or anything left over that can't help sponsees get to the march going to Planned Parenthood. No one has commented yet saying they'd like it back.
posted by sciatrix at 9:03 AM on January 17, 2017 [6 favorites]

That list of Sister Marches sciatrix links is wonderful. So overwhelming to see all the places having marches!
posted by dog food sugar at 9:13 AM on January 17, 2017 [2 favorites]

If you can't march, it will probably be valuable to monitor social media. If anything happens that day, many marchers will be without phone service or simply occupied. Someone needs to keep an eye on the Cheeto and his cronies, retweet, signal boost as needed, etc.

This is exactly what I'm planning to do. I debated about going to Toronto but it just won't work. 3 hour drive each way, plus dogs at home and other people in the house being out of town means it's a no go.
So I'll be on my butt with a couple of computers open, tv on and away we go. Oh and snacks, lots and lots of snacks.
posted by Jalliah at 9:14 AM on January 17, 2017 [3 favorites]

We appreciate that, Jalliah, and it's important. Maybe think about joining the MeFi FireChat so that you can coordinate some of the local news/retweeting/signal boosting for those of us who probably won't have much internet?
posted by sciatrix at 9:20 AM on January 17, 2017

Is there a MeFi FireChat? Where is that being coordinated? (Sorry, not keeping up.)
posted by RedOrGreen at 9:22 AM on January 17, 2017

I'm marching in the Cincinnati sister march. This might actually get me fired, if I'm found out. I signed an 'organizational responsibility' clause recently (because the other option was losing my job, which I really can't do), which states that I can be terminated for publicly opposing the teachings of the Catholic faith or publicly advocating for any position in conflict with Catholic teaching*. The damning sentence: "This requirement includes any public speech, demonstration, or writing including the use of social media or other digital technologies."

I skirt the line every single day with this. I'm not friends with ANY of my coworkers on Facebook (and I don't use my last name on there) and I'm careful to keep my views to myself at work, but the danger is real and it's scary but I cannot stand by. I have to go.

The crazy thing is I'm not even Catholic, or religious in any way actually. I just happen to work for a Catholic organization and I'm conflicted every day because of it...I'm pro-choice, after all...but I needed the job and I guess I'm biding my time until I can move on? CONFLICTED.
posted by cooker girl at 9:25 AM on January 17, 2017 [14 favorites]

Yes; it's in the IRL thread. (I hear you on not keeping up; I'm barely following everything myself!) PM EVM for the invite link.

Uh, notquitemaryann asked upthread about singing opportunities. If you can come find me or possibly other MeFites at the Air and Space Museum steps ahead of time, my partner and I will have a small portable Bluetooth speaker and a Spotify playlist of protest songs that are more or less easy to sing along to. Sheydam-tants has instructions on how you can get the lyrics for every song on that list downloaded to your phone (so as not to require internet) here. I'm not aware of anything formal, but I like the idea of singing together. More on that in the IRL thread here.
posted by sciatrix at 9:38 AM on January 17, 2017 [1 favorite]

cooker girl: what you need to do - essentially what I did while marching on active duty against the Iraq War - is make sure that any public signage or any speeches you give focus on something that is unreproachable.

So if they say "omg you marched in a group of pro-abortion people" you can say "No! I marched against this RAMPANT IMMORALITY!" Which, tbh, Trump totally comes down on like a million things that the Catholic church has Strong Feels about. Like, say, his habit of sexually assaulting married women.
posted by corb at 9:39 AM on January 17, 2017 [11 favorites]

Also, re: cooker girl: I hear you. I got a friend who works for the Texas Legislature who is under similar work-related constrictions, and she's working there for similar job-related reasons as she tries to work out her career path post graduation. It's killing her to not be able to so much as volunteer with the League of Woman Voters because the job views that as potentially partisan.

I appreciate the courage you're bringing, I guess is what I want to say.
posted by sciatrix at 9:40 AM on January 17, 2017 [4 favorites]

anyone have suggestions for protest signs for medieval-clad protesters?

"Stand fast for the liberty of the church and the realm" was part of the oath sworn by the rebels against King John, and would be historically appropriate. Though probably best to leave the "church" part out as many people would either be confused or would assume you were a right-winger who got lost.

"Stand fast for the liberty of the realm". That would be perfect for the knight in shining armor, swearing an oath to an idea greater than mere kings, and taking the first step in forcing King John to recognize the rights of the people.
posted by honestcoyote at 9:44 AM on January 17, 2017 [10 favorites]

I love the name-carrying idea. After taking up a mefite on their request I circulated the idea to my friends and relations, and am now bringing nine more names & counting to DC. Add me to the list of folks to contact if you would like to be similarly bbrought!
posted by heyforfour at 10:08 AM on January 17, 2017 [2 favorites]

I'll be marching with a bunch of nurses in Philly. Some of us are going to be acting as street medics as well. No sign for me at least (others in my group might have them), but you will know us by our shirts.
posted by ActionPopulated at 10:35 AM on January 17, 2017 [9 favorites]

Apparently the march platform was just amended to remove the section on solidarity with sex workers rights [details in this twitter thread]. No statement yet from the organizers on why the change was made. This erasure is very disconcerting to me.
posted by melissasaurus at 11:16 AM on January 17, 2017 [3 favorites]

Does anyone have information about traffic going into DC?

We plan on leaving very early Saturday morning. I am figuring there must be a time at which the roads into DC are going to slow to a crawl. I would like to time our arrival to get in before the crush.
posted by angrybear at 11:20 AM on January 17, 2017 [1 favorite]

DC traffic usually starts to get heavy by around 8-9 AM on weekends. Given the number of folks coming in for the protests, I would guess that will start at least an hour or two earlier, but it's been a while since I've been in DC during a major protest.
posted by biogeo at 11:27 AM on January 17, 2017 [1 favorite]

I'd go down to the States to join a protest if it were possible, but given that I've got both financial and chronic fatigue issues it's not to be thought of. I just googled to see if there was to be a solidarity march in Toronto because I could take part in that for a few hours, but though there's been talk of one, it doesn't seem to have materialized. Sigh. To those who march, know that this Canadian is with you in spirit. I've also promoted the pussyhat effort on my knitting blog's FB page, which I hope was of a little more use.
posted by orange swan at 11:45 AM on January 17, 2017 [3 favorites]

Have some pictures of a badass women's suffrage march from 1913. I would love to go dressed as Columbia, personally but nobody gets that reference these days.
posted by emjaybee at 11:45 AM on January 17, 2017 [6 favorites]

Also: @girlscouts has decided to march in the Inaugural parade in the name of "civic engagement." Perhaps ya'll are, like me, disappointed in this as a former GS. I've already tweeted my disappointment, feel free to do the same. Or contact them another way to express your feelings on supporting a person like Trump when your org empowers young women.
posted by emjaybee at 11:52 AM on January 17, 2017 [8 favorites]

Yes, from Magna Carta: (To no one will we sell,) to no one deny or delay right or justice.
Or some Meister Eckhart: The stronger the wind blows, the greater grows the fire.
Or John of Salisbury: The whole state has a case against tyrants.
Or Julian: If I look singularly to myself, I am right nought.
(and much more but I guess I am at work still)
posted by notquitemaryann at 12:00 PM on January 17, 2017 [3 favorites]

emjaybee, is that a national GSUSA move? When I google it, I see that some NC, Kansas and Missouri troops are going, but I might as well write to a brick wall as to ask moms from there not to send their daughters. If it's a national office policy I would like to send a Strongly Worded Letter. I might do it anyway, just to encourage some kind of reward for Girl Scouts who go to the protests instead.
posted by Countess Elena at 12:24 PM on January 17, 2017 [1 favorite]

It's coming from GSUSA -- their twitter account tweeted:

"Since 1917, Girl Scouts have engaged in Presidential inaugural events to learn about the US democratic process & civic engagement."

"GSUSA respects the rights of each member of our org. to make their own decision regarding their participation in this event."

"As a non-profit organization GSUSA is nonpolitical, nonpartisan, & will continue to encourage our girls to be civically engaged"
posted by melissasaurus at 12:42 PM on January 17, 2017

Thanks! A letter will be on its way from me, a former maker of lanyards and rower of canoes.
posted by Countess Elena at 12:47 PM on January 17, 2017 [7 favorites]

@orange swan, I believe the Toronto March is happening at Queen's Park, 12-2 (details on route etc apparently on the way).
posted by cotton dress sock at 3:00 PM on January 17, 2017

If allowing girl scout troops to participate in inaugural events is okay, I don't understand why my daughter's troop can't get permission to wear their uniforms to our local protest march. Can't have it both ways.
posted by Margalo Epps at 3:04 PM on January 17, 2017 [12 favorites]

Through a combination of timing and location I am actually able to make the first half of the Denver march but have to zig instead of zag about halfway through the route. I'm frustrated as hell I don't get to make the whole thing, but at least I can do something.
posted by Gygesringtone at 3:13 PM on January 17, 2017 [4 favorites]

Thanks for the SCAdian suggestions-- I can totally see us carrying some of them!

This erasure is very disconcerting to me.

Is it possible to be charitable towards the motives of the organizers? This is kind of how we destroy our own.
posted by steady-state strawberry at 3:43 PM on January 17, 2017 [2 favorites]

I'll be at the rally at the capitol in Saint Paul Saturday and like dinty_moore said the weather is supposed to be unseasonably warm for January in Minnesota. I might rock just my tshirt and write people's names on my arms that can't be there.
posted by Bacon Bit at 6:23 PM on January 17, 2017 [5 favorites]

This erasure is very disconcerting to me.

Is it possible to be charitable towards the motives of the organizers? This is kind of how we destroy our own.

Saying "This is disconcerting" on a message board when "we" drop support of a marginalized group without explanation could hardly be any more charitable.

Claiming a total lack of charity and blaming someone directly to their face, on the other hand... that's "how we destroy our own."
posted by Etrigan at 6:51 PM on January 17, 2017 [5 favorites]

Which other groups should we be charitable about motives for omitting? So far the flip-flop on sex workers and the overall omission of disability issues seem to be getting "there there, it's more important we all stick together" from an uncomfortably large number of people. Who's the next group to get the message they should be quietly and non-fussily grateful for whatever crumbs get tossed in the name of solidarity?
posted by Lexica at 7:14 PM on January 17, 2017 [7 favorites]

I'll be at the Portland protest when I get out of work 8)
posted by gucci mane at 2:01 AM on January 18, 2017 [1 favorite]

SWOP and others contacted the organizers about the deletion of the sex worker solidarity line and they've added it back in. Here's a statement from Janet Mock (who wrote the line).
posted by melissasaurus at 2:20 AM on January 18, 2017 [5 favorites]

Oh, good to hear that. I'm not happy it was dropped--about to read Mack's statement--but pleased to see them so responsive to criticism and contact info.

Now leaving for the airport to head to DC. Cannot decide whether I want the airports to be absolutely jam packed or moving relatively smoothly. Either way, it's ass o clock in the morning, Houston's tornado warning just ended, and I'm flying Spirit, king of the dumbasses, so everybody wish me luck making it to the end of this flight.
posted by sciatrix at 2:48 AM on January 18, 2017 [5 favorites]

Mock's. Dammit, autocorrect.
posted by sciatrix at 2:57 AM on January 18, 2017

So, hey, historically, when was the last time there was an angry anti-inauguration march with Trump-supporter-like anti-protestors?

Because I'm sort of a visible target (wheelchair, vagina dentata sign which hopefully will just confuse most crackers) and I'll be marching with other visible targets.

I'm fine with jeers in my direction, but if any shit gets thrown on anybody near or dear to me I'm going to fight with the urge to Hulk-out, wheelchair style.
posted by angrycat at 3:49 AM on January 18, 2017 [4 favorites]

So, hey, historically, when was the last time there was an angry anti-inauguration march with Trump-supporter-like anti-protestors?

This will be larger in scale, obviously, but since the election any time I've heard of pro-Trump anti-protestors showing up at a rally or march, they were so small and ineffectual it was laughable.
posted by tofu_crouton at 6:17 AM on January 18, 2017

I wouldn't be super confident of that, and I would urge everyone to be cautious. If these are in fact some of the same people I think they are, Gathering of Eagles under a new rebrand, they actually physically clashed with us when we were there for antiwar protest. Carlos Arredondo, gold star dad and now Boston bombing hero, got beaten by multiple members who thought he was being disrespectful to the flag.
posted by corb at 7:00 AM on January 18, 2017 [2 favorites]

My experiences at marches have been along the lines of tofu_crouton's, but this is a significantly larger march with, and this is important, a hell of a lot more warning and planning than the ones I have gone to. Makes it easy to get more of us there, but also more of them. So I genuinely do not know.

Re the urge to Hulk out wheelchair style, does it help to hold the idea of what this will look like on the evening news in the back of your head in the event of pro Trump pushback? That's a thing that I keep in the back of my head at marches and protests: not whether I would be ashamed to see things on the news, but whether or not my actions can be spun in support or against my cause to recruit the undecided or uninformed.

Trump fan bros attacking or harassing a lady in a wheelchair looks real bad on the evening Facebook feeds, is all I'm saying. And when I was at the post election rally and the lone Trump supporter there did get physically harassed, only to have a tiny nineteen year old woman in hijab intervene and physically shield him--well, that made damn good local press for us.
posted by sciatrix at 7:11 AM on January 18, 2017 [7 favorites]

Sciatrix, yeah, that's what I'm keeping in mind.
posted by angrycat at 7:16 AM on January 18, 2017 [1 favorite]

It's easy to control your actions when you are mad as piss if you feel like you're still winning even as enemies act poorly, that's all. I'm saying that because my own temper can be pretty knee jerk and I instinctively respond to people going aggro at me by immediately ramping up my own anger to match. That helps me.

Anyway, you in particular I need to track down so I can give you your hat, so if we can manage to march together and someone is so foolish as to harass you... Well, I can whisper snide remarks about their ability to think ahead or manage basic political strategy in your ear, if that will help you remember and if that's a thing you'd like.
posted by sciatrix at 7:27 AM on January 18, 2017 [3 favorites]

Yes! I'll memail you
posted by angrycat at 7:32 AM on January 18, 2017 [3 favorites]

A friend and I are driving 70 miles from our small town to Rochester, Minnesota where we will get on buses with at least 120 other women for the trip to St. Paul. Sounds as if we'll be wearing our raincoats and long underwear (along with some other layers)! Represent.
posted by a fish out of water at 2:32 PM on January 18, 2017 [5 favorites]

A nice follow-up from Girl Scouts USA, from their related tweet, "Civic Engagement is in a Girl Scouts’ DNA. Girl Scouts to attend #Inauguration and #WomensMarch."

My daughter will wear her uniform when we march in Seattle on Saturday.
posted by Margalo Epps at 6:34 PM on January 18, 2017 [10 favorites]

The NYC protest/Rally thing was pretty fun!

Cher was there!

Also like, 20,000 people.
posted by The Whelk at 10:01 PM on January 19, 2017 [4 favorites]

So my mom is marching in the Bay Area on Saturday. In anticipation of the event, my sister put up a picture of our mom wearing what looked to me like a very strange beanie (maybe devil horns?), with a message saying, "My mom is ready to march on Saturday - are you?" You really haven't lived until you've seen your 81-year-old mother wearing a PussyHat
posted by The Gooch at 8:46 AM on January 20, 2017 [2 favorites]

My 76-year old mom is wearing one as are thousands and thousands of other people. It doesn't seem weird to me at all. Cute ducklings, on the other hand....
posted by gingerbeer at 3:21 PM on January 20, 2017

Cher was there!

Also like, 20,000 people.

My gods, that's almost three Chers worth of fabulousness.
posted by Etrigan at 3:32 PM on January 20, 2017 [2 favorites]

Just got done at one of the first marches in the world! Was projected to be like 600 people but instead about 2000 showed up here in Auckland. Speakers themes were refugee rights, womens rights, intersectionality, feminism, and youth. #WMNewZealand #WMAkl #SisterMarch #WM_Global on all social media if you want to enjoy some ferocious goodness today 😁😁😁
posted by supercrayon at 3:38 PM on January 20, 2017 [11 favorites]

We are now up to 2.2 million planned sister marchers, on the eve of the march. Stay safe, y'all, and take care. We stand together, and we hold the line.

Let's go do this.
posted by sciatrix at 5:24 PM on January 20, 2017 [4 favorites]

This march is the continuation of the on-going fight for equality, not the start or end. We'll keep keeping on both on and after the 21st, as women have done for centuries. Solidarity with all.
posted by Excommunicated Cardinal at 10:12 PM on January 20, 2017 [3 favorites]

The official Women's March on Washington livestream on YouTube here.
posted by mdonley at 7:01 AM on January 21, 2017 [2 favorites]

Well I stayed for as long as I could, and had to head to work thinking that the Denver march hadn't even started yet at around an hour later than it was supposed to. Turns out that there were so many people, that the march had started but the momentum hadn't reached our part of the crowd. I was in the tail end of the middle of the crowd. I stumbled across the parade on my walk back to work and was able to join in for several blocks worth of marching.

It was something like I'd never been apart of before I'm still overwhelmed and tearing up randomly at work. Here's A story from the post with a great overhead shot of the crowd.
posted by Gygesringtone at 11:06 AM on January 21, 2017 [8 favorites]

Really great turnout at the march in Vermillion SD! I'm actually stuck in traffic by the march on my way to the march which is hilarious but my old college town is doing me proud!
posted by jason_steakums at 11:07 AM on January 21, 2017 [4 favorites]

Five figure turnout in Vancouver BC. "Not our President, still our problem."

Best protest sign of the day: a young girl carrying a sign that said "Fight Like A Girl" and had a large picture of herself doing karate.
posted by justsomebodythatyouusedtoknow at 12:30 PM on January 21, 2017 [8 favorites]

Unbelievable turnout in Montpelier, VT. I stepped out of my door to walk to the march gathering point and suddenly joined everyone else. It was like Christmas morning and the whole town had one single giant tree. There was so much traffic they closed the 89 offramp. A surprise guest made it through: Bernie. He spoke briefly and fiercely and people were just in tears. I've never felt such energy in a crowd.

There were only two counterprotesters, if you could even call them that: a polite dude in a fedora and Trump shirt cheerfully saying, "equal rights for ALL," and some guy from the Judean People's Front holding a sign blaming us for not caring about Obama's drone strikes. They weren't looking for trouble, so fair play to them. There is ugliness in Vermont, but it was hiding today.
posted by Countess Elena at 1:10 PM on January 21, 2017 [4 favorites]

20,000 were expected in St. Paul, Minnesota and police are saying that 60,000 turned up. I do know that other cities in Minnesota were also doing their own marches, including a retired librarian in Longville, MN, who, being new to town, didn't know anyone and decided to just have a one-woman march. However, Minnesota Public Radio did a story on her yesterday and a bunch of women from other cities drove in to march with her, bringing the number of marchers to maybe a couple dozen, in a town of less than 200 people.
posted by triggerfinger at 1:34 PM on January 21, 2017 [5 favorites]

My police chief says there were 75-100k marchers in Madison, Wisconsin. Population 240-something.

My facebook has been full for days of women who have never posted anything political sharing pictures of themselves in pussyhats and organizing information for their local marches and photos of themselves on planes to D.C. I honestly have not felt this hopeful in a long time.

(In other news, my two year old twins were rocking matching pussy hats and were, OBVIOUSLY, the stars of the entire day. I am just reporting the facts here, without bias.)
posted by gerstle at 1:57 PM on January 21, 2017 [5 favorites]

Made it home from downtown Denver. (All hail the light rail.) While we were waiting that extra hour for things to begin, the volunteers were saying 100,000 people were there, and now I'm hearing 200k. I believe it.

I broke a toe last week but marched anyway. I'm cold, stiff and sore now, but give me a few and I'll be fine. What's next?
posted by rewil at 2:00 PM on January 21, 2017 [3 favorites]

Just got back from the DC March. So many people. So many pussy hats (a big thank you to MeFighter Quietgal for making mine). Some truly creative and wonderful signs. I'm so glad that the original plans for the March's route fell through due to the number of people who showed up, because this meant that the marchers got to walk down Pennsylvania Avenue past Trump's hotel and then down 17th Street by the White House. We needed and deserved that proximity and I'm glad we forced it to happen by showing up in such numbers. Of course the Coward-in-Chief was at the CIA lying about the crowd size at his inauguration, but the photos/videos of this march and all the sister marches will always stand as a testament to how unpopular and hated he really is.
posted by longdaysjourney at 3:20 PM on January 21, 2017 [6 favorites]

Final count for St. Paul is 100,000!
posted by triggerfinger at 3:24 PM on January 21, 2017 [3 favorites]

Triggerfinger, do you know where the 100k figure came from? I saw it unattributed on Facebook, but haven't seen it anywhere else. I mean, it could have been (I was estimating 75k earlier), but I'm suspicious about stuff like this.

Most Minnesotan sign of the day: "I'm not usually a sign guy but geez"
posted by dinty_moore at 3:51 PM on January 21, 2017 [3 favorites]

One thing I want to mention. All those viewing stands from the inauguration that were so empty yesterday are still up. They were filled with marchers today.
posted by longdaysjourney at 4:14 PM on January 21, 2017 [2 favorites]

I donated to Planed Parenthood in honor of the marchers today. Thank you all for continuing to fight the good fight, however and whevever you can.
posted by PearlRose at 5:01 PM on January 21, 2017 [5 favorites]

Triggerfinger, do you know where the 100k figure came from? I saw it unattributed on Facebook, but haven't seen it anywhere else. I mean, it could have been (I was estimating 75k earlier), but I'm suspicious about stuff like this.

St. Paul Police say that between 90-100k were in attendance. It's been reported in the Star Tribune.
posted by ZeusHumms at 5:26 PM on January 21, 2017 [1 favorite]

Awesome, thanks! When I was searching earlier I could only find the 60k figure in any news reports (except for Fox which was reporting 40k). They must have been slow to revise.
posted by dinty_moore at 6:02 PM on January 21, 2017

LA march is being clocked in at 500k - 1million+, depending on the source. Light rail lines were absolutely overwhelmed by the demand (so there were a lot of people already leaving while even more people were coming off the trains), and people were walking around holding signs and wearing hats well outside of the designated march zone, so I'd lean toward a number closer to the high end of that range.
posted by miguelcervantes at 7:01 PM on January 21, 2017 [2 favorites]

Is there a verified source yet for how many people came out in each city?

The DC march was incredible. We basically took over a good chunk of the city when it got to big for the original route. The sea of pussy hats and all the hilarious signs gave me a lot of hope.

I really liked all the chants but I can't remember all of them except for the really common ones. Anybody?
posted by numaner at 7:05 PM on January 21, 2017 [3 favorites]

This has been so wonderful.
posted by Ivan Fyodorovich at 7:55 PM on January 21, 2017 [2 favorites]

I went to the one in Lincoln and then drove to Omaha since they were staggered in a way that made that work. I didn't really know what to expect since I hadn't done this before, and Lincoln is pretty blue but also small. There were so many people! I haven't seen estimates but I wouldn't be shocked if it hit around 2K.
When we went to Omaha, there was an assigned parking lot that we were told to go to originally, but they were opening up additional lots because turnout was so much more than they had expected. That march had a much longer route and I wondered if there would be more grossness, but like Lincoln it was really cheerful and spirited. I only saw two counter-protests in Omaha (literally two dudes, with fetus signs) but two frat houses in Lincoln decided to hang out with Trump campaign signs. Nothing too nasty though, just some juvenile snarking that was easily ignored. It was a great day, just full of positivity, and I didn't know how much I needed it until I was there in the middle of all these great people.
posted by PussKillian at 8:35 PM on January 21, 2017 [3 favorites]

dinty_moore, I'm pretty sure I saw it on the official Women's March Minnesota's facebook page. I along saw it on twitter somewhere but don't remember where.
posted by triggerfinger at 8:46 PM on January 21, 2017

Some photos of the Chicago march. Around 250,000 people showed up! It was such an empowering event!
posted by SisterHavana at 9:13 PM on January 21, 2017

Some highlights of my personal experience at the Women's March on DC today:

1. Alarm clock failure meant getting out to the Metro a bit later than intended. We arrived at Braddock Road Metro at about 9:30. The lines to buy/load passes were already stretching out the entrance of the station, but since we already had our SmartTrips loaded, we were able to go straight to the platform. It was already pretty full of women and men in pussyhats carrying signs. A completely full train was stuck waiting at the station, due to backup. The mood at the station was already festive, with folks complementing each others' hats and signs. When the train finally left, the crowd on the platform cheered. Moments later, another train arrived -- already completely full to capacity. The crowd cheered again. I've never seen people happy to not be able to board.

2. After waiting on the platform for about 15 minutes with no chance to board any trains in sight, we decided to give up and make our way to the Potomac by car, and then cross into DC on foot. In the 15 minutes we'd been at the station, the line to enter had stretched around the block. Google Maps suggested crossing on the 14th Street Bridge, so we made our way towards it, only to discover that the 14th Street Bridge has no footpath. A series of annoyed but still helpful Virginia State Troopers directed us and a few other wayward souls to go to the Memorial Bridge, which became an interesting game of finding the navigable path. Finally two women who had come from Ohio and Atlanta called over to tell us they had an Uber coming that they could share to help get us to the Memorial Bridge quicker. This very kind offer probably shaved a good 20-30 minutes of walking from our journey. We bonded over politics on the ride there.

3. Thanks to FireChat (and despite its bugs), we were able to meet up with Mefite unannihilated on the D.C. side of the Memorial Bridge. Meeting her and getting to march alongside her awesome sign was a real highlight of the day. Special shout out and thanks to sciatrix for organizing the IRL event, and EVM for organizing the FireChat!

4. We walked together toward the rally site at the start of the march, and arrived at the back of the crowd (just barely in earshot of the last Jumbotron) at about 10:30 or 11. As we arrived, we saw a family with their elderly matriarch in a wheelchair, carrying a sign saying "100 years old and marching for women's rights." Her family explained that she had spent her birthday riding 9 hours in the car to come to the march -- and that she was a lifelong Republican.

5. The crowd behind us quickly filled in, and there was a sea of pussyhats, protest signs, and smiling faces everywhere in all directions. Checking the route map on my phone, I realized that from where we were waiting, with nearly 2 hours still to go before the scheduled start of the march, the 2 mile march route was already more than halfway filled with marchers. This was when I started to suspect more people had shown up than predicted.

6. A bit after 1, the signal to begin marching came. But there were simply too many of us to march. Instead it was more of a shuffle. As we all started to realize that the sheer number of us was the greatest impediment to our march, people began laughing, cheering, and joking about the "great Women's shuffle on Washington." As we slowly milled our way toward the Mall, there were lots of great chants, lots of waving, lots of people asking to get photos with each others' signs. No one seemed too upset about any delays caused by this.

7. The public safety personnel along the march seemed for the most part to be thoroughly enjoying it. Particularly sticking out in my memory is a young national guardswoman, leaning out the window of her military vehicle to wave at the marchers, a huge grin beaming on her face. Later on, as the march route began to succumb to sheer numbers and entropy and spilled onto the Mall, I also recall a (male) Capitol policeman proudly saying to the passing marchers something along the lines of "You guys did it! There's two million of you here!" (Estimates are 500,000 in D.C.; at some point during the day news outlets were reporting two million nationwide, which I'm guessing is what he'd heard.)

One thing that really stuck out to me throughout the whole experience was how happy everyone was. Yes, people were angry about the election. Yes, people were ready to fight for women's rights. But overall, folks really seemed to be having fun, and were just delighted to be together in solidarity. Things have looked dark since November, and we've got a long road ahead of us. But today was a great reminder: there are more of us than there are of them. The America that elected its first Black president in 2008, that made marriage equality the law of the land in 2015: it hasn't gone anywhere. It's still here, and its knitted pink hat is looking pretty fabulous.
posted by biogeo at 10:44 PM on January 21, 2017 [12 favorites]

Oh I just found out from a friend what my favorite chant that I forgot was!

"We need a leader,! Not a creepy tweeter!"
posted by numaner at 12:01 AM on January 22, 2017 [5 favorites]

I can't sleep because I keep looking at everyone's photos.
posted by deludingmyself at 12:35 AM on January 22, 2017 [2 favorites]

As we all started to realize that the sheer number of us was the greatest impediment to our march, people began laughing, cheering, and joking about the "great Women's shuffle on Washington."

The joke I kept making--and forgive me, folks who were around me, because I must have said this one ten or twenty times--was "yes! This is how progress happens, after all; very slowly and with great friction!"

I also kept laughing that we had Washington on our side; perhaps not the Congress, but certainly the people!

(I may actually be the one person who got very, very angry during the rally, but that was more because the chants to get marching already started coming a full hour before the scheduled march time and I wanted to hear and see the damn speakers, most of whom I respected intently. I was particularly fucking appalled when the crowd around me started to pick up chants to march while the goddamn Mothers of the Movement were speaking and I got very angry about it.

I think I only completely managed to relax after Janelle Monae took the stage, because that woman can handle a crowd more deftly than I have ever seen in my entire life. She caught all the frustration of the people around us at not being able to march and directed it into an enthusiastic massive crowd song of What I'm Talmabout, and then took the converted enthusiasm and love and deftly pointed it at the Mothers. I have never seen anything quite like it. I knew I loved her, I knew she was genius, but... Well, I love her even more now.)
posted by sciatrix at 4:58 AM on January 22, 2017 [10 favorites]

In Seattle I'm hearing estimates of 100,000 to 140,000 people at the march. The crowd was large enough that it took over an hour for us to realize that people had, in fact, started marching, possibly even on time. We not only couldn't hear the speakers at the rally, we never got close enough to see any stage/microphone setup (not a complaint; I'm impressed). The Seattle Times live updates say that the crowd starting marching around 11am. At 12:30pm, the increasingly claustrophobic crowd where I was started pushing their way out. It took several blocks of marching to realize that this was not where we were supposed to be marching. Some shouting around to the crowd got the answer back that we were supposed to be marching on Jackson, so we headed that direction, going up 20th, 18th, and Rainier Avenue, as we split to reach the march.

Around me, people were generally mindful of it being a silent march, though we interpreted that as talking to people around us (as opposed to chanting) rather than actually being quiet. However, every now and then, a wave of sheer noise would roll back through the crowd. I wondered at it, because I thought the last few blocks were supposed to be the energetic noise spot. I didn't realize until afterwards that the energy and yells had come from people in their last few blocks of marching, and rolled all the way through the march, passing through me at 10th & Jackson, and on back, probably all the way to 23rd to people still at Judkins Park. It's incredible to think of people filling every inch of our 3 1/2 miles, with some gathered at Seattle Center, while others still waited at Judkins. There were so many of us in the street that we frequently used the sidewalks on both sides of the street as well.

Every bus I was on was packed full, lots of people wearing pussyhats and carrying homemade protest signs. Metro ran a lot of extra buses for us -- the first bus I was on had two buses doing it's route (both of which filled up). The bus I took up from the lightrail (after trying to meet people nearby) was one of many stopping there and trying to get as many people as possible on. (It was only a mile or so south of the park, so many people just started walking.) Bus after bus pulled up, and there were people to fill them all. My daughter and I ended up leaving the march about halfway through, just because it was so late that we were all tired out (and we were both getting over a bad cold). The bus home was also completely packed, despite the early time. It was an amazing energy to be part of.
posted by Margalo Epps at 9:39 AM on January 22, 2017 [1 favorite]

This article about "identity politics" and how George Soros supported the March is being passed around pro-donny circles. I don't even know where to begin to dissect it.
posted by numaner at 10:07 AM on January 22, 2017