The Women’s March is returning to Washington, DC on Saturday, eight years after its historic first march. The rally, now rebranded as the People’s March, aims to broaden its support and reflect on the state of progressive organising ahead President-elect Donald Trump‘s inauguration as President for second time on January 20.
In 2017, the Women’s March attracted over 500,000 marchers in Washington and millions more in cities across the country, marking one of the largest single-day demonstrations in US history.
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The movement was fueled by outrage over Trump’s 2016 presidential win.
This year’s march is expected to be significantly smaller, with attendance estimated at one-tenth of the inaugural rally. The comparative quiet reflects a sense of exhaustion and disappointment among progressive voters following Vice President Kamala Harris‘ loss, according to report from Associated Press.
Tamika Middleton, managing director at the Women’s March, acknowledged the challenges of recapturing the energy of the first march, stating, “The reality is that it’s just hard to capture lightning in a bottle. It was a really particular moment. In 2017, we had not seen a Trump presidency and the kind of vitriol that that represented.”
The movement has undergone an overhaul to address accusations of a lack of diversity, resulting in this year’s rebrand as the People’s March. The demonstration will promote themes related to feminism, racial justice, anti-militarization, and other issues, concluding with discussions hosted by various social justice organizations.
Jo Reger, a sociology professor at Oakland University, noted that the People’s March is unusual in the “vast array of issues brought together under one umbrella.” While conflicting visions are inevitable in a broad-based social justice movement, Reger suggested that discord can bring change and new perspectives, particularly from underrepresented voices.
Middleton emphasized that the goal of Saturday’s event is not to recreate the massive demonstration of 2017 but to focus attention on a broader set of issues and encourage participants to continue fighting in their communities long-term.
