The Boston March
By: Sam Trullo
On the morning of January 21, 2017, less than 24 hours after Donald J. Trump was inaugurated as the 45th President of the United States , people took to the streets and began peacefully protesting.
The day was bright and warm for a day in the middle of winter but I believe it was that way because of the positive and intense energy that was buzzing around the protests. The sun was bright and warm, the crowds were welcoming and pleasant, and the entire day was empowering. Many people came out to show support for one another while condemning the proposed agenda items of President Trump, such as his de-funding of Planned Parenthood, the undoing of the Affordable Health Care Act, and his off color remarks about his fame allowing him access to women that he made to television star Billy Bush. I remember it took us almost two hours to get out of the Boston Common, yet nonetheless, with such a great turn out, it was hard not to be happy.
My friends and I arrived at the event around 10:45 a.m. The event hadn’t started, but there were already throngs of people in attendance. As we made our way through the crowd, it was hard not to feel emotional. The anger we felt about our rights being infringed upon wasn’t enough to poison the strong feelings of love, happiness, and support. One of my friends turned to me and said that she “wanted to cry” because of the overwhelmingly intense atmosphere. She was right. Everyone was ready to fight for human rights and nobody was going to back down. Even U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey showed their support by giving equally moving speeches to the thousands in attendance.
The morning after I attended the Women’s March in the Boston Commons I saw a quote on Facebook that said something along the lines of “this wasn’t just a one day thing, it's day one of something bigger”. Nothing could compare to the accuracy of that post for me. With 175,000 people in attendance at the Boston Women’s March and hundreds of thousands more in other major cities, such as New York, D.C and Los Angeles, it’s hard not to get emotional about the intensity of such an event. Women’s marches took place in all 50 states, with an estimated attendance of over 4 million.
After the election of President Donald Trump, everyone but the heterosexual, cis-gendered, white male community were immediately threatened. Many people took to social media and started the hashtag #NotMyPresident while others voiced support for those affected by Trump’s ideologies and policies.
Unfortunately, while there was so much positivity among attendees, it was hard to ignore the glaring issue that was a constant at many of the rallies: that there was not enough trans inclusively. Many people held up signs pertaining to female genitalia, stating “this pussy bites back” but it seems that the people using this type of genital specific language forget that not all women have vaginas. This error may not seem that important to some cis-gendered women but that’s because they have the privilege not to worry about it. To make future Women’s Marches more successful and inclusive, it is the job of cis-gendered women, like myself, to stop and remember to be more mindful of our language so that we don’t exclude other women.
Overall, this special day is only one of many to come. As the Facebook quote I mentioned earlier stated, this is truly only the beginning and hopefully it will be the beginning to the end of inequality!