People’s March brings thousands to Washington in defiance of Trump
A diverse coalition of thousands marched in Washington on Saturday in the name of women’s rights, climate change, prison abolition and more, but also as an act of defiance against President-elect Dona
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Demonstrators at the People's March in D.C. hold up a sign at Farragut Square Jan. 18, 2025. Photo by Sarah Hagen / VCU Capital News
People’s March brings thousands to Washington in defiance of Trump
By Sarah Hagen and Andrew Kerley, VCU Capital News Service
WASHINGTON -- A diverse coalition of thousands marched in Washington on Saturday in the name of women’s rights, climate change, prison abolition and more, but also as an act of defiance against President-elect Donald Trump.
The march was a callback to 2017, when the first Women’s March was held the day after Trump’s first inauguration. The now rebranded People’s March was held two days before the start of his second term. Protests began in three separate locations, each with a different focus. Demonstrators marched through the district, to eventually converge at the Lincoln Memorial.
Speakers at Franklin Park rallied the crowd over abortion access, LGBTQ rights and the Equal Rights Amendment. President Joe Biden the day before declared the ERA to be law, though many say the move is just symbolic and could not stand on legal ground.
Protesters chanted throughout downtown “we’re not going back,” “trust Black women” and “this is what democracy looks like.” Lida Jones, a 79-year-old protester, said women of future generations will not have as many rights as she does “unless they care.”
“People don’t care about things like this until they’re personally affected,” Jones said. “I think there are not enough young people involved.”
Jones grew up in Alabama, lived throughout the South, and now calls Colorado home. Her outlook on life shifted as a teenager as she watched “dogs and hoses” turned loose on civil rights demonstrators, she said. Jones’ message is “to treat everyone with love and respect,” though she said it can be hard when there is “so much hate.”
Organizers this year requested a permit for up to 50,000 people, which some in the media speculate is a sign of a waning and splintered movement when compared to the 500,000 participants who flooded the nation’s capital eight years ago. The first Women’s March is often reported as the largest day of action in history, when including the associated events nationwide — even globally.
Ella Duncan, national organizing director for the Young Feminist Party, believes there is a stronger wave of feminism than ever, one centered around youth and intersectionality — when multiple forms of discrimination overlap and contribute to oppression. A group of teenagers first launched the Young Feminist Party in 2019 in Virginia, to support the effort to be the 38th state to ratify the ERA.
“When Trump is in office, we’re gonna have to be working hard together to basically do a lot of damage control and protect our trans youth and to protect our Black women who are most at risk for not having an Equal Rights Amendment in our U.S. Constitution,” Duncan said.
Soyinka Rahim — an interdisciplinary artist from California — urged people to listen to Black women and create new systems that serve everybody.
“Vote. Vote. Vote. Vote. Vote,” Rahim said. “Also — within your own communities — have real conversations about historical wealth, murders and genocide.”
The three marches met at the Lincoln Memorial around noon, ahead of scheduled speakers. Crowds of counter-protesters formed on each side of the memorial, yelling and holding signs. They were eventually escorted away by law enforcement.
Rachel O’Leary Carmona and Tamika Middleton, directors of the Women’s March organization, spoke at the greater rally — and they weren’t phased by the smaller crowd. After all, thousands of people still marched in the streets and buses trickled into the district from up and down the East Coast. Coordinating events were scheduled around the U.S.
“In 2017, we made history,” O’Leary Carmona said. “In 2025, we’re making our future.”
The forecasted inclement weather and limited access will likely sway some travelers from attending Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration, which was moved inside the Capitol Rotunda. But on Sunday, tens of thousands lined up outside the Capital One Arena, waiting in freezing rain, for a chance to hear Trump speak at his planned “Make America Great Again Victory Rally.”
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