Last Saturday, thousands of Women’s March demonstrators marched the streets of Washington D.C. to protest Trump’s nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court.
This march was organized by the Women’s March and required masks or face coverings and social distancing. Several events were also held virtually. Rachel Carmona, executive director of the Women’s March, stated on Saturday that “the first Women’s March in 2017 was historic…Now four years later…with 17 days to go (until the election), we’re going to finish what we started”. Those who spoke at the demonstration also urged protestors to call their Congress members and urge them to suspend the Supreme Court confirmation process. In addition, many demonstrators held tributes to the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg were witnessed at the march, as a way to honor her passing.
When referring to Justice Ginsburg, Fatima Goss Graves of the National Women’s Law Center called her the “architect of our foundational rights” in the U.S. She also commented on Judge Barrett, saying that the confirmation hearings left Goss Graves “without a doubt” that Barrett would “undermine our rights” and “…undermine our access to reproductive health care, to abortion from voting rights to climate change. She refused to even answer basic questions”.
Other gatherings occurred in other U.S. cities, including Houston, Chicago, San Diego, Cleveland, and New York City. The marches focused not just on the Supreme Court, but also the election, reproductive rights, and abortion access. A protestor from Maryland, Allison Barnabe, addressed her fear of Roe being overturned, and stated, “The fact that I am living in a country now where I am concerned, and I’ve never had to be, is a very scary thought”.
After the marches, of which over 429 occurred both virtually and socially distanced, the Women’s March organization released this statement: “Today, we showed the nation what the power of everyday women looks like. From Palmer, AK to Bemidji, MN to Wilmington, NC, to the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C.—when we come together, take to the streets, and turn out to vote, women are the most powerful political force in America.”
Media Resources: Feminist Newswire 9/28/20, USA Today 10/17/20, Feminist Newswire 9/21/20, The Hill 10/17/20, NPR 10/17/20
