The bus to the Women's March

a reply to: desert

Soros was more than generous

I'm thinking more like taking names here at ATS, charter me a freaking aeroplane - have us a first rate girls trip to Barbados!

On a more serious note (not that I'm not serious) ^^^

I'm pretty sure women would put that money to good use somehow. I'm not sure that something just like that isn't happening in some way - somehow

a reply to: MotherMayEye

I think that's exactly what they want you to fret about. Call their bluff. Vote third party, next time.

You made a really good point earlier in the thread that I meant to reply to at the time, but didn't get round to it. Why didn't Americans do this? Is it a case of tactically voting, to prevent the 'worst' party (whatever your political leaning) from getting in, or do people generally think it's a wasted vote?

In Scotland, our political map changed overnight when the Scottish National Party became the third biggest party in the UK. People were sick to the back teeth of the two main parties and wanted change.
That's why I will always support peaceful protests like the Women's march because they get people talking. We don't all have to agree with every aspect of them, and not everyone will be fully represented, but they raise issues into the public sphere and can then act as a catalyst for discussion, change and for growth.
Is something similar likely in America, do you think? Could smaller parties benefit from this election?

a reply to: Byrd

You rock that hat!
After so long reading history, now you're writing it.

a reply to: Spiramirabilis

Hey!

That's not fair... Us guys wanna go, or some of us, to Barbados. It's sunny and warm, and sand, and...well lottsa stuff. Drinks with little umbrellas will figure prominently...

a reply to: beansidhe

It does actually take a lot of courage to vote for a third party in the U.S. People are terrified that their vote will be wasted or they decide they don't support *whatever* third party so they could never vote for one, even if it's the lesser of three evils.

I am glad you found that point important enough to bring it up. If women have the courage to travel for two days to march with a completely unknown crowd, then perhaps they have the courage to vote for a third party candidate, next time, and get the third party to that 5% they need to level the playing field significantly. And maybe then, they won't find their rights so threatened by half the country or the majority.

We have two contender third parties in the U.S.: The Green Party and the Libertarians...both support a woman's right to choose among other civil liberties and rights that lend themselves to the causes espoused by this group of marchers 'for women.'

I agree with the last point you made, too. I have enjoyed this thread for the fact that I was able to talk to other women about how I feel...even if some women had no appreciation, at all, for it. Some did and engaged. So kudos to the march for opening up a dialogue that was much needed by me.

a reply to: MotherMayEye

I like these types of discussions too, because they make you think. When you know what you don't want, it can feel frustrating or threatening but when you figure out what you do want, you can go for it.

That's interesting that lots of Americans are worried they will waste their vote. I think what I, and probably other folk from tiny wee countries forget, is the sheer vastness of the USA. It's massive! I wonder if the geography plays a part, of people feeling 'apart from' their government. The huge numbers of people voting must make it seem like your own vote is tiny, and therefore unwasteable.
Anyway, yes, it would be great if America could get away from their two-party system and start shaking things up a bit.

a reply to: seagull

:-)

You know Seagull you're right. I so wish. Would do us all some good

An interesting sidenote....


www.rawstory.com...

originally posted by: olaru12
An interesting sidenote....


www.rawstory.com...

Good

originally posted by: olaru12
An interesting sidenote....


www.rawstory.com...

an interesting source....

White House sources told the Post

a reply to: Spiramirabilis

I can think of worse places to argue, I mean discuss, about things, too.

originally posted by: MotherMayEye
a reply to: Byrd
I feel happy for you after seeing your pic and I know this experience was meaningful for you.

I just want to say this...not to take away from your experience...I don't want any woman marching for me in much the same way that I don't want anyone praying for me.

I went to Washington, but I wasn't marching for you.

I wasn't marching for me, either.

I can't speak for you, but I am fairly privileged. I've been quite poor (with a disabled son and staggering medical bills) and had a job that paid a man's salary... I was able to pay for every degree I got (sometimes taking a year off until I had enough money to continue)... on one occasion working two jobs while taking care of my newborn and my one year old. At age 68 I'm healthy, I have a decent retirement plan, I have a doctor and dentist that I love and while we're not wealthy we have enough to pay our ongoing medical bills and buy a car or two (we own our own home) and pay property taxes and buy whatever new clothing or gadgets we want to.

I didn't go to Washington to march for me. I didn't go for you.

This wasn't about me.

It wasn't about you.

It's about cuts that the Republicans have been doing to food stamps (I have friends who are a little younger than I and in much worse health and live in a house that should be condemned (holes in the roof that they can't afford to fix and he doesn't have the mobility to climb up and fix.)) Food stamps don't get them much, but without them... imagine being old and not able to afford a box of macaroni (because yes, that's how poor they are.) Or being able to eat, but only if they live in their car (I am old enough to remember the very poorest families living in cars in the 50's and 60's)

It's about the unequal implementation of the Affordable Care Act - because my cousin died of heart failure as a consequence of not being able to afford his medication (the state where he lived did not accept Federal grants that would have made it possible to get health care.)

It's about the cuts to the Republican parties made to Veterans benefits -- I watched my nephew (who retired from the Army) fight for his troops to have access to PTSD programs and health services and benefits for their families... he's battling right now on behalf of someone with PTSD.

It's about cuts to the anti-violence programs (one of the women on the bus is a young female rapper with her own label and Youtube channel... can you imagine how many times she's been threatened with rape and death simply for being a young woman who raps?)

It's about attitudes toward Muslims ... the greatest leverage against ISIL is photos of Muslim women in the free world ... not just women, but women in hijabs, going to school without having acid thrown in their faces, driving cars, going shopping, holding down good jobs -- and their imams aren't screaming for their death and their husbands haven't taken to the fainting couch, wailing about Islam being destroyed. They might not be able to read our words, but a single image of a student in jeans, walking and talking with a group of men and women shows the women that they're trying to control that it IS possible to be Muslim... and free.

It's about the Dakota Pipeline... people in the nearby town could say "no, no pipeline" and everyone said "okay. Moving it to an Indian reservation." The Native Americans said "no" and it moved forward anyway. They have suffered so many broken promises and the reservations are centers of neglect and poverty -- but there's no plan in this administration to fix that and today Trump signed the order for the pipeline to proceed in spite of the opposition of almost everyone on the reservation.

I marched for voter rights... because of Republican voter ID laws -and the Republican party in Alabama that then closed the DMV offices that issued these IDs in predominantly Black counties. That's just wrong.

I marched for a lot of these reasons and more.

But it wasn't about you.

And it wasn't about me.

Whether I agree, or not, that was well said.

Conviction.

ETA: Not sure why, but I forgot to add I do agree with most everything you said... Senior moment? Naah, I'm much too young for that...

So... let me continue my tale.


The trip to DC was long - what surprised me was the sheer number of people in the metro station. Everyone was patient and pleasant - but the trains were crowded. Our station was at the end of the line and at every stop we passed there were people on the platform (sometimes big crowds on the platform) waiting with signs and hats.

Someone told me that the last stop (La Fountain) was so crowded that people were having difficulty leaving the station and said we should get off at the Smithsonian stop. I did... and that's how I got separated from my group.

So there I was, all alone, in a very large crowd at around 9:40 am.

I started walking around, but only made it to 10th street (the main stage was at 3rd street) and couldn't get farther because of the crowds. I headed to the bathrooms and then to a food stand (there were five or six of them at the event, all from the same company) and got a hot dog.

That turned out to be a good decision. Within 15 minutes, I found myself locked in a crowd so vast that I could move only an inch in every direction. When you're only 5'3", the view ain't that interesting...


There were jumbotrons every few streets but at that particular place, I couldn't see a thing. I could hear, though, and heard parts of the speeches. The crowd was polite in spite of the crush, saying "excuse me" and "pardon me" and so forth.

At one point I heard shouts to my left and turned. They were shouting "Medic! Medic!" We took up the shout and it carried onward toward the medical station. Two minutes later the crowd pushed apart to make a small path as a medic in a bright-green vest came through, followed by two others. We pointed and he disappeared into the crowd. About eight minutes later a volunteer started parting the crowd and he came back with an elderly woman in a wheelchair. They went off to the left and the crowd flowed back into the space where they'd been.

And then it was time to march (I was beginning to feel some pain from standing in one place without moving for over an hour)... but nobody moved. We waited five minutes and then ten minutes. Nothing happened.

We had no idea that the crowd was so large that it was physically impossible to march.

Occasional chants of "march! march" started, fading after 30 or so repetitions. Eventually something happened... a barrier moved or something and we finally began shuffling forward. Along the way, some dropped out to sit on the sidewalk. We were mostly quiet as we walked, though occasionally chants would rise.

Someone started a call-and-response chant:
.."tell me what democracy looks like" they called
The crowd responded "THIS is what DEMOCRACY looks like!"
As the shouts died down, a tiny voice (three or four year old child) shouted "tell me what democracy looks like!" and the crowd responded "THIS is what DEMOCRACY looks like!" much to the child's delight.

Another popular chant was "We want a leader - not a creepy Tweeter!" Heard that chant several times.

I saw in the distance someone carrying a sign that I recognized as being from the Standing Rock council (couldn't make it over to them). I saw people of all races and many faiths. There were a lot of signs there...

My favorite:
What do we want?
Evidence-based science!
When do we want it?
AFTER PEER REVIEW!
(I laughed so hard at that one)

Anyway, I'm sure you've seen the photos of "best signs" ... or perhaps "worst signs/most appalling signs" if you looked for sources that didn't support the march. Some carried photos of their mothers/relatives (one marcher's sign indicated they were marching for their mother, who wanted to be a civil engineer but who was denied that career because she was a woman).

-- continued...

...continued...

People had climbed into the trees along the route (some of us were walking, some strolling on the mall, some sitting and watching) - at one point the crowd chanted "girl in the tree! girl in the tree!" She apparently had a sign they liked but I was too far from it and the crowd was pushing me forward.

Three people passed us with 'signs' that were black tubes (like a suit coat arm) with labels and tiny hands at the top. Memory eludes me about the text on the arms, but the signs were really clever.

I eventually made it to the Washington monument and found a place to sit for a few minutes. A young Muslim woman passed wearing a button with a phrase in Arabic (I had studied Arabic for our trip to Egypt) that I knew I recognized but couldn't remember what it said. So I asked.

"It says 'peace be upon you'," she answered -and it clicked... yes. That's what the button said. "Would you like a button?" she asked shyly.

"Sure!" (anthropologists will pick up anything handed to them at a festival)

"Here's one for you, and one to share" she said, handing me a card with buttons.

I bobbed my head. "Salam alikum," I said (which is 'peace be upon you' in Arabic. My accent is horrible) Her face lit up with delight and surprise. "Was alikum salam," she responded ("and peace be upon you.") The crowd swirled around us and we were separated. I looked at the card.

It read "these buttons were made for this march by the Unitarian Universalist Church" - and gave the address of the church.

I chuckled - so typical of the Unitarians.

Right about the point at which the photographer snapped the crowd (the one that shows my hat), I heard a sudden roar from the crowd ahead and could see a line of police motorcycles blocking one of the streets. I asked others what was happening but no one knew (we couldn't make out what the crowd was yelling from that distance.)

I later found out that this was the Trump motorcade back from the CIA. Somewhere there's a video of what he would have seen if he looked out the car window toward us, but I can't find it now.

It was 4pm and I was tired so I made my way back to the Metro station (having walked the whole circuit around the Mall) - the crowd waiting for the train was several blocks long. I eventually caught up with my group and we ate and then boarded the bus for the trip home.

And most of the rest of it I've already written about.

Wrap-up:

So what did I learn?

Quite a bit. I learned about the fears and hopes of the other women on the bus - and women we encountered on the way. One of our bus riders (who was my age) was a woman who'd grown up in the South and she spoke about her experience. A woman at a rest stop spoke about her mother dying of breast cancer because they couldn't afford treatment. Another talked about a scar caused by broken glass that her mother had when the KKK threw bottles at her family.

I learned about the history of 501C-3 organizations and what made the rise of megachurches possible... and why there was a "no politics can be preached in any church that files as a 501C-3 organization" (you can look this one up - actually you'll have to do more than one article, but it's pretty darn fascinating.)

Most of all, I made connections. We who rode the bus also have a Facebook group only for us and the others are passing along actions (congressmen to call, etc) that come their way.

How long will it last? Don't know. I made some new friends, learned a lot of things, and have been given an avenue to extend my protest so I can speak for my friends who have no voice, who don't have the same kind of access (I can afford to buy Internet. I don't have to wait to go to the library.)

I don't know how much I can do. I'm only one small elder; a tiny voice on this big planet. But if I can give a voice to some of the voiceless even for awhile, perhaps that will be enough.



...and so... enough of the report, I think. I felt it might be useful to ATS to hear a report from this event; to give back to ATS because it's given me so much (given me things to research... I didn't agree with many of them but I learned oh so much in looking up original sources for these things.)

And here, no matter which side of which issue you are on, is how to find your Congresscriters Let them hear YOUR voice (positive, negative, whatever) in the next four years.

Because this is a democratic Republic.

Because you need to stand up for things and people, too (even if I disagree with your opinion.)

a reply to: Byrd

Thank you for all this Byrd

The Exhausting Work of Tallying America's Largest Protest

The Women’s March has some of the hallmarks of the beginning of a successful movement, Chenoweth said. The ability to mobilize large numbers of people is often associated with the creation of an effective campaign. The fact that the march was inclusive and broad rather than tied to a specific policy goal helped draw big numbers, Chenoweth said, and the explicitly non-violent nature of the protests helped attract even more. The level of organization on display at events large to small bodes well for the social movement, as does the proportion of march participants who aren’t usually politically engaged.

I love that poster

a reply to: Byrd

by anychance Were there any discussion about women abuses in muslim countries or the practice of sharia law towards women?

is there a followup march to protest how women are treated in muslim countries and the effects of sharia laws against women rights?

originally posted by: interupt42
a reply to: Byrd

by anychance Were there any discussion about women abuses in muslim countries or the practice of sharia law towards women?

is there a followup march to protest how women are treated in muslim countries and the effects of sharia laws against women rights?

This was about Americans and their struggle. It wasn't about other countries.

The whole issue was about our fellow citizens here at home and what we felt government needed to do and to undo to help Americans in crisis. I feel...and we all felt... like health care, voting rights, the environment, education, and equal access here in America are the most important things to focus on.

If you would like to advocate for other countries to change their policies, you can write to their ambassadors directly or take petitions to them. If there is a policy that affects these countries that you think is bad, contact your congressman.

As to religious changes, the best advocates for that are progressive religious leaders of that faith. I am not one of them and I don't really know any.

However, a million non-Muslims (or even governments) advocating for something won't do a thing for Muslims in other countries any more than a million Buddhists or a million Muslims or a million Jainists or a million Satanists in foreign countries advocating for something will change a single policy of any Christian church.

(btw, you don't seem to be aware how many different Muslim sects there are or the differences in each. You might find reading up on them to be interesting. They're as different from each other as the Roman Catholic Church is from the Voice of Deliverance Church)