Pissed off people carried their anger in handmade signs, at the second Women’s March, in New York City yesterday. The anger wasn’t worn so firmly on the majority of the faces in this energized crowd. This group of protestors had a hopeful nature, and a solid, upbeat presence. Most were terribly adult in their distaste for the current political atmosphere and the guy at the helm. Their vulnerability, fears, disappointment, grief and outrage showed in their signs.
Some came from a developing place:
This one heartbreaking and more dire:
Activist Heather Heyer, killed at the rally of white nationalists in Charlottesville, VA.
With lots to say about Donald Trump:
From a core fight for women’s equality last year, the issues have spread out this year. Even though it was just a few months ago that the doors were blown wide open on sexual harassment and assault, last year’s marchers were ahead of the tide. I remember a good number of signs in 2017 about sexual harassment and assault after our president’s infamous line, “Grab ’em by the pussy. You can do anything.” Hell, it sparked a whole new style of hat. This year the emphasis on women’s issues was shared more widely with a human rights array of grievances, because Trump’s first year in office has brought attacks on nearly every minority in our melting pot of a nation: as inscribed on the Statue of Liberty, Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.
This week on Plumage 59 we’ll be highlighting more faces of feminism, and even a bit of humor, in these persistent marchers. The Sunday Self Style Series returns next Sunday to talk about power dressing.
Photos: Dawn Bell Solich