When I was a senior in High School I was Captain of the Mock Trial Team. I also served as the lead prosecution attorney and at the time was considering that as my future career goal. A mock trial competition would go the same as a regular trial (I would lead 1 witness, cross-examine two witnesses from the other team, and provide the closing statement), but as opposed to a jury deciding the defendant's fate, a sitting judge would give feedback to everyone on your team.
On the date of my final competition I finished my closing statement and awaited the judge’s feedback fairly confident that I had impressed him. The feedback began….”Now young lady, I want to start by saying that you are a very strong attorney for your age, but you need to adjust your tone. If you were a man it would have been right on point and you would have sounded assertive and confident, instead, since you’re a woman you just come across as kind of a b*tch. It isn’t fair, but it is how it is.”
I was flabbergasted. How could my gender impact how good of an attorney I would be? I have been called a lot of things since then: Too loud, too softspoken, too skinny, too fat, too prudish, a slut. I have been bombarded by hyper sexualized images telling me that I need to strive for the perfect body (yes, please tell me that it is necessary to use sex to sell a cheeseburger). I have been cornered in a room and lectured at that a woman’s place is in the kitchen. All of this comes down to someone else's understanding of what a woman should be.
These comments don’t take into account the darker side of what women experience. I have been followed home at night down a dark street. I have been grabbed by people in clubs without my consent. I have been taught to never leave my drink alone on the table, don’t wear your hair up because it makes it easier for an attacker to grab, walk with your keys between your fingers in case you need to use them as a weapon, and make sure multiple people know where you are going to be if you go out on a first date.
Those are merely my experiences as a white, cisgender woman. It doesn’t even speak to the prejudice against transgender women, particularly transgender women of color, who not only have to fight for access to basic services, but sometimes their very lives. It does not speak to the indigenous women who have had their sacred land taken away and are subjected to sexual assault at 2.5 times the national average. It does not speak to the structural violence built into the very systems of our society.
All of these are critical issues, and that is the reason that I chose to participate in the Women’s March in Los Angeles this Saturday where (depending on who you ask) 200,000-750,000 people showed up. I marched because this is the one body I have and I want to make powerful decisions with it. I marched to express solidarity with transgender women, indigenous women, women of color, muslim women, and women with disabilities. Their stories are not mine to tell, but as I do recognize my privilege and occupy a position in the culture of power as a white, cisgender woman I want to listen when they lead and take action in solidarity. I marched because white women made a decision this past election which I believe is going to hurt this country, and I refuse to let that frustration turn into apathy. I marched because I don’t want the next generation to have to.
After a frantic uber ride to Downtown Los Angeles for the march I rounded the corner and saw this scene.
I immediately started sobbing, I couldn’t handle the emotion of the moment. Hundreds of thousands of women and allies showed up to make a statement that they were fighting for a better world. The estimates are still rolling in, but around the world the low estimation of overall participants is 3.5 million.
Everyone at the march came for their own reason. I heard people discussing climate change, reproductive rights, health care, domestic violence, sexual assault, water rights, education, rape culture, immigration reform, pay equity, parental leave, judicial reform, racial justice and more. I watched a Black Lives Matter activist embracing a young bisexual woman who was concerned about conversation therapy as they both explained the reasons they were marching. I watched a four year old holding a sign that said “The Future is Female” because it is.
Now why were all of these issues being discussed at a woman’s march? Because women’s rights are human rights.
At the very heart of this march was intersectionality. As outlined under the unity principals of the march, organizers stated:
Recognizing that women have intersecting identities and are therefore impacted by a multitude of social justice and human rights issues, we have outlined a representative vision for a government that is based on the principles of liberty and justice for all.
To put it simply, everyone has multiple aspects of their own identity that intertwine and impact their life. As someone who is white and cisgender I have a very different identity than a transgender person of color. While I may focus more on reproductive rights and planned parenthood funding as core tenets of my feminism, other individuals may be focusing on forced sterilization of women in the prison system, the pay gap for women of color, how deportation will impact the family, and more. If feminism is only a white feminism that does not take into account the voices of people of color, transgender women, people with disabilities, LGBT people, indigenous people, if it does not provide space for these persons to lead, then it fails us all.
The march was incredibly impactful, and I saw quite a few phenomenal signs, depicted here:
However, one sign that stood out to me in particular said “Activism is not temporary.” We cannot and will not allow this march to be a pat on the back for saying you took action. As Black Lives Matters has said, this isn’t a moment, it is a movement.
So what happens the day after the Women’s March? This Refinery 29 article highlighted the concern over this idea
I have compiled just a few ideas into a “Political Activism 101” Kit listed below. This is by no means holistic, and I encourage you to take every one of these actions and find 5 more. I want to hear from you what other ideas you have, because without dialogue and working to take action together, then change will not occur. As George McGovern once said, "The highest patriotism is not a blind acceptance of official policy, but a love of one's country deep enough to call her to a higher plain." Today we call our country to a higher plain.
Political Activism 101
1. Call Your Member of Congress
This one sounds daunting, but it is actually super easy. You can locate the number for your Representative on their website, or through the Congressional Switchboard. In order to develop a phone script, I will provide a sample call to the Congressional Switchboard.
You: [Dial 202-224-3121]
Switchboard Operator: Congressional Switchboard, how may I direct your call?
You: Hello, my name is [your name]. Will you please direct me to Congressperson [your Representative's name] office?
Switchboard Operator: Yes. please hold.
Receptionist: Congressperson _____'s office. How may I help you?
You: Hello. My name is [your name] and I live in the Congressperson's district. I am calling because [eg. I am deeply passionate about continued funding for Planned Parenthood. I think providing safe access of reproductive health services to low-income populations is critical and must be supported)
[You may stop at this point, or if you have a specific bill you would like the Congressperson to support, note it at this time. It will be listed as H.R. ### or S. ###]
Receptionist: Thank you. I have made a note of it here.
You: I appreciate the work that the Congressperson does. Can I leave my contact information to follow up if the Congressperson chose to support [bill number]?
Receptionist: Sure
You: Great, my email address is [your email address] and my phone number is [your phone number]. Please feel free to follow up at any time and thank you for your time.
2. Track the legislation that matters to you
If you are going to call up your Congressperson to talk about legislation, it is probably good to know what legislation is currently pending. My favorite app is one called Countable, which you can use either on your phone or via the website. On the app you can customize what issues you care about, vote yay or nay to make your voice heard, track the progress of the bill, and find out how your representative voted on it.
3. Loop in with groups in your city
What are your causes? Don't just think on a national level, but also get connected in your city. Think globally and act locally. The League of Women Voters, National Organization for Women, Sierra Club, ACLU, Black Lives Matter, all of these groups we hear about on a National Level, have state or city chapters. If you want to continue the momentum, take action locally.
4. If you do engage in protests and marches, know your legal rights and how to be safe
The ACLU has put together a phenomenal guide of what rights you have as a protestor. The above link includes specifics over if you are stopped by the police, if you can be searched, photography and more. Additionally, write the number of trusted individuals on your arm in Sharpie. This can be friends, family, or the number for your local Lawyer's Guild. When your phone runs out of battery at the protest (and it will run out of battery) it is important to have immediate access to those phone numbers if anything happens.
In addition, take care of your body. Make sure to carry water with you, snacks to keep your blood sugar up, essential medicine, and a rechargable phone battery. One marcher on Saturday was wearing a sign on his backpack that said "Free water, Free Granola Bars, Free Access to Phone Charger" and was giving them out to anyone who needed them. He definitely made quite a few friends that day, and made sure some of the marchers had access to these necessary items.
5. Follow the 10 Actions for 100 Days Plan
Every ten days for the next 100 days the Women's March will be release different plans of action. This first week's action is writing a postcard to your Representatives about what issues matter most to you.
6. Vote with your dollar.
Find companies with the same values you have, and support marginalized communities and businesses. As an update of in June of 2020, we have seen a phenomenal amount of individuals committing to supporting businesses run by people of color. Check out this great resource list from Sarah Davis of FinImpact on how to support Black-Owned Businesses during this time.
I leave you with one final quote, written by Alex Steffen:
“Optimism is a political act.
Entrenched interests use despair, confusion and apathy to prevent change. They encourage modes of thinking which lead us to believe that problems are insolvable, that nothing we do can matter, that the issue is too complex to present even the opportunity for change. It is a long-standing political art to sow the seeds of mistrust between those you would rule over: as Machiavelli said, tyrants do not care if they are hated, so long as those under them do not love one another. Cynicism is often seen as a rebellious attitude in Western popular culture, but, in reality, cynicism in average people is the attitude exactly most likely to conform to the desires of the powerful – cynicism is obedience.
Optimism, by contrast, especially optimism which is neither foolish nor silent, can be revolutionary. Where no one believes in a better future, despair is a logical choice, and people in despair almost never change anything. Where no one believes a better solution is possible, those benefiting from the continuation of a problem are safe. Where no one believes in the possibility of action, apathy becomes an insurmountable obstacle to reform. But introduce intelligent reasons for believing that action is possible, that better solutions are available, and that a better future can be built, and you unleash the power of people to act out of their highest principles. Shared belief in a better future is the strongest glue there is: it creates the opportunity for us to love one another, and love is an explosive force in politics.
Great movements for social change always begin with statements of great optimism.”
May this march serve as our great moment of optimism. Hearts Open, Fists Up.