Posted in: Comics, Recent Updates | Tagged: anti-trump, empowerment, nyc, president trump, women, women's march, womensmarchnyc

I Popped My Protest Cherry at the Women's March in NYC

Let me set the scene for those of you that weren't in attendance: It's in the low forties and you can see your breath, but you aren't cold. It is crowded, like claustrophobic crowded. (An estimated 500,000!!) There are men and women of every shape, size, color, orientation, and age. There is chanting. It shuffles between "Hey hey! Ho ho! Donald Trump has got to go," "my body, my choice," and "What does a feminist look like? This is what a feminist looks like!" There are children in strollers, on their parent's shoulders, climbing up on the barriers. The vibe is a mixture of empowerment, rage, and utmost support.

I have never experienced anything like this before.

I attended this event with my boyfriend (complete with fsociety shirts for all of you Mr. Robots fans out there) and a close friend of mine (along with her beautiful, beautiful family). We entered and exited the march at various points to mingle with different people. Every time we stepped out of the barriers, I was amazed by the sheer number of people that came together to stand up for what they believe in. Being from a series of small towns, I never had the opportunity to do something like this. I made my sign this morning, double sided.

The first side was meant to be a joke, but the amount of people that stopped to take a picture of me was ludicrous. Some laughed and pointed it out to their friends. They would mutually shake their heads because really, how did we end up here, how is this our country?

The second side is a quote from the musical that swept the nation, Hamilton. (All credit goes to Lin Manuel Miranda, who was marching in London today, I believe?) There were quite a few older women who stopped to talk to me about this sign. Their general response was, "I can't believe we're still protesting this shit, honey." 

A vast majority of the signs used President Elect Trump's words against him. There was a plethora of My Pussy Grabs Back and Nasty Women. There were also several depictions of him as an asshole, inappropriately touching the Statue of Liberty, or with marionette strings, as he seems to be Putin's puppet. The lyrics of Beyonce (#GetInFormation and Boy, Bye) was another breakout hit. I was happy to see several Carrie Fisher quotes and other fandom references. Star Wars, Harry Potter, glittery words, and pictures of ovaries flipping the bird were literally everywhere.

I have a lot of feelings about this peaceful protest that I can't really put into words. This election was the first time I've been old enough to vote. The result was devastating to me. I come from a background of independent women. The majority of my friends come from other countries or identify as part of the LGBTQ+ community. I have been called disheartened and pessimistic. As someone who has been constantly sexually harassed, I can not even begin to fathom why and how we let someone like Donald Trump into office.

There were a few Trump supporters that stood on the sidelines while we marched, but they didn't say anything. They leaned against the railings and stared at the massive throng of people that shook Fuck Trump signs to the beat of the drums that erupted from time to time.

Ultimately being apart of this march was eye opening. I definitely left feeling as though a change is possible. We will continue to fight. We will keep hope alive. In the words of Empire Records:

Damn the man. Save the Empire.

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