By: Amber Xu
Hell hath no fury like one million women scorned.
Women’s March. A march that happened in Washington D.C., Paris, London, Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco, Sydney, Berlin, Nairobi, many other cities around the world, and even Antarctica! A march that rallied for the rights and respect of not only certain women, but women of all different races, transgender rights, LGBTQ+ women, immigrant women, disabled women, Planned Parenthood, health care for women, the environment, and most importantly, the people. I stood in solidarity with more than one million protesters around the world, because women hold up half the sky.
As we boarded the BART train to Civic Center, people of all different demographics boarded with me. As the train progressed, more and more people boarded. Teens, grandmas, immigrants, boys, girls, and a man in a bright yellow ski suit. Our train was held up more than three times because of the sheer amount of people going to Civic Center to rally in the Women’s March. By the time the BART reached Civic Center, we had passed crowds of protesters at the Powell and Embarcadero stations, who were only a fraction of what was to come.
The first sign I saw as I stepped out onto the platform was, “Respect existence or expect resistance!” As we followed the crowd up the station stairs, more and more protesters flooded in. On the stairs, there were so many people going up and coming down. There was a sort of pulse in the air, an atmosphere of excitement, determination, and pride from all different ages and races. When we finally got up the stairs, we were swarmed with people. I could hear faint chanting from down the street. There were photographers, protesters, dogs with signs, and hundreds of clever posters. By the time we got out onto the street, it had started raining, and as the rain came down harder, we were soon marching as a sea of umbrellas and waterproof posters.
People were dancing, singing, waving flags, chanting in the pouring rain, and all for one cause. Attending this protest showed me the true power of “the people.” Standing in the face of injustice, we will prevail. We will not be divided, and we will do everything in our power to protect our brothers and sisters, mothers and daughters. It was the greatest display of unity and democracy that I have ever seen, and I am so, so proud of our country for organizing and coming together for the Women’s March.
