Hundreds of people gathered in damp, chilly weather Saturday for the People’s March, a protest in Washington of President-elect Donald Trump and the GOP’s policy priorities, which organizers say will undermine the rights of women, immigrants, and social and racial minorities.
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Participants started gathering around 10 a.m. at Farragut Square, McPherson Square and Franklin Park, in downtown Washington, with each location focused on specific issues, including democracy, climate, D.C. statehood and bodily autonomy.
Chanting slogans like, “People, people can’t you see, what freedom means for me?” they began marching in a cold drizzle toward the Lincoln Memorial, where they planned to rally until 3 p.m.
The march, two days before Inauguration Day, was a joint effort among civil rights, racial and social justice, and reproductive health organizations. It comes as the extremely cold temperatures projected for Monday have moved Trump’s swearing-in ceremony indoors to the U.S. Capitol Rotunda.
Organizers say they hope that the march will inspire people who have who felt exhausted and resigned, and that protesters can turn their passions, outrage and fears into collective opposition.
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On Saturday, Cassie Dominicis, 33, stood in the crowd at Franklin Park wearing the same pink pussyhat she knitted for the Women’s March in 2017.
That day, she marched in Washington with her mother, describing it as “magical.” She returned this year to be among like-minded people willing to fight back against policies that she said strip rights away from people, especially attacks on the LGBTQ community and abortion access.
“When you have so many millions of Americans voting like you don’t matter... It’s good to be in a big crowd of people that that make you feel like you do matter,” said Dominicis, a financial analyst from Charlotte, North Carolina.
This time, however, her mother isn’t with her. While others march, her mother, who now lives in Wisconsin, will be going to a farmer’s market.
“It’s just tough for her to even face,” she said.
At Farragut Square, Cynthia Hatfield, 75, of Asheville, North Carolina, said that the issue that touches her most is climate change. The town had been badly damaged by Hurricane Helene last year.
“But COVID, the election ... it feels like everything is changing at once, politics as well as climate," she said.
Hatfield grew up in D.C. but said she hadn’t visited for many years. “I am putting my body where my heart is,” she said.
Though her home only suffered minor damage from the hurricane, Hatfield said she knows it will take her community years to rebuild.
At 75, she says she advocates for climate action not for herself, but for generations to come.
“We might not see the results of us holding these actions in our lifetime, but if we continue generation after generation holding the hope that we can have a change, the planet will survive,” she said.
Elsewhere, Leah Hernandez, 20, carried a sign reading: “Immigrants are the backbone of our country.”
A first-generation American, she says she’ll never forget the horrifying period of her childhood when her father was nearly deported to El Salvador — the country he had fled.
“If immigrants have come here for centuries, why is it a problem whenever people are trying to seek asylum here and seek peace and make a living for their family while also contributing to our society?” she said. “They’re contributing members and I feel like it’s very important to recognize those who are working very hard to make this a better place for all of us.”
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One of the groups behind the demonstration is the Women’s March, which drew more than 1 million people to protest in D.C. and elsewhere the day after Trump’s first inauguration in 2017. That demonstration is widely considered the country’s largest single-day protest. While organizers don’t anticipate that Saturday’s event will come close to those numbers, they emphasized that beating a history-making day of protests is not the goal.
“If the prerequisite were that we shouldn’t get out or shouldn’t take action … unless it can be bigger than the biggest thing that ever was, no one would ever take action,” said Rachel O’Leary Carmona, the executive director of Women’s March.
Marching is one of the “easiest entry points” for first-time protesters or people who are interested in becoming more involved, said Tamika Middleton, the managing director of Women’s March. Organizers were encouraging protesters to dress warmly and to pack hand and feet warmers, small backpacks and “your feminist spirit, your defiance to injustice, and your demands to protect our freedoms,” according to the People’s March website.
The diverse range of issues reflects the goal of this march as providing a big tent for protesters — one that seeks to attract people who champion liberal views on a host of issues. Leaders have specifically pointed to Project 2025 — a Heritage Foundation-led blueprint for a second Trump presidency that he has disavowed but that involved veterans of his first administration — as a threat to democracy and civil and human rights.
Get concise answers to your questions. Try Ask The Post AI.Participants started gathering around 10 a.m. at Farragut Square, McPherson Square and Franklin Park, in downtown Washington, with each location focused on specific issues, including democracy, climate, D.C. statehood and bodily autonomy.
Chanting slogans like, “People, people can’t you see, what freedom means for me?” they began marching in a cold drizzle toward the Lincoln Memorial, where they planned to rally until 3 p.m.
The march, two days before Inauguration Day, was a joint effort among civil rights, racial and social justice, and reproductive health organizations. It comes as the extremely cold temperatures projected for Monday have moved Trump’s swearing-in ceremony indoors to the U.S. Capitol Rotunda.
Organizers say they hope that the march will inspire people who have who felt exhausted and resigned, and that protesters can turn their passions, outrage and fears into collective opposition.
🌸
Follow D.C. region
On Saturday, Cassie Dominicis, 33, stood in the crowd at Franklin Park wearing the same pink pussyhat she knitted for the Women’s March in 2017.
That day, she marched in Washington with her mother, describing it as “magical.” She returned this year to be among like-minded people willing to fight back against policies that she said strip rights away from people, especially attacks on the LGBTQ community and abortion access.
“When you have so many millions of Americans voting like you don’t matter... It’s good to be in a big crowd of people that that make you feel like you do matter,” said Dominicis, a financial analyst from Charlotte, North Carolina.
This time, however, her mother isn’t with her. While others march, her mother, who now lives in Wisconsin, will be going to a farmer’s market.
“It’s just tough for her to even face,” she said.
At Farragut Square, Cynthia Hatfield, 75, of Asheville, North Carolina, said that the issue that touches her most is climate change. The town had been badly damaged by Hurricane Helene last year.
“But COVID, the election ... it feels like everything is changing at once, politics as well as climate," she said.
Hatfield grew up in D.C. but said she hadn’t visited for many years. “I am putting my body where my heart is,” she said.
Though her home only suffered minor damage from the hurricane, Hatfield said she knows it will take her community years to rebuild.
At 75, she says she advocates for climate action not for herself, but for generations to come.
“We might not see the results of us holding these actions in our lifetime, but if we continue generation after generation holding the hope that we can have a change, the planet will survive,” she said.
Elsewhere, Leah Hernandez, 20, carried a sign reading: “Immigrants are the backbone of our country.”
A first-generation American, she says she’ll never forget the horrifying period of her childhood when her father was nearly deported to El Salvador — the country he had fled.
“If immigrants have come here for centuries, why is it a problem whenever people are trying to seek asylum here and seek peace and make a living for their family while also contributing to our society?” she said. “They’re contributing members and I feel like it’s very important to recognize those who are working very hard to make this a better place for all of us.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/poli...agnet-trump-inauguration_inline_collection_12
One of the groups behind the demonstration is the Women’s March, which drew more than 1 million people to protest in D.C. and elsewhere the day after Trump’s first inauguration in 2017. That demonstration is widely considered the country’s largest single-day protest. While organizers don’t anticipate that Saturday’s event will come close to those numbers, they emphasized that beating a history-making day of protests is not the goal.
“If the prerequisite were that we shouldn’t get out or shouldn’t take action … unless it can be bigger than the biggest thing that ever was, no one would ever take action,” said Rachel O’Leary Carmona, the executive director of Women’s March.
Marching is one of the “easiest entry points” for first-time protesters or people who are interested in becoming more involved, said Tamika Middleton, the managing director of Women’s March. Organizers were encouraging protesters to dress warmly and to pack hand and feet warmers, small backpacks and “your feminist spirit, your defiance to injustice, and your demands to protect our freedoms,” according to the People’s March website.
The diverse range of issues reflects the goal of this march as providing a big tent for protesters — one that seeks to attract people who champion liberal views on a host of issues. Leaders have specifically pointed to Project 2025 — a Heritage Foundation-led blueprint for a second Trump presidency that he has disavowed but that involved veterans of his first administration — as a threat to democracy and civil and human rights.
