By: Kendjana Adolphe
As March is Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day is near, it is important to reflect on recent Women’s Rights. On Jan. 21, 2017, five million women and men all over the world reunited to speak out for the freedom, rights and justice of women and allies. And once again this year, on Jan. 19, the Women’s March Global flooded the streets of Washington D.C, along with other cities in the United States and in other places around the world.
The first Women’s March in 2017 occurred the day after the inauguration of President Donald Trump, and for many, the tensions rose due to some offensive statements by Trump considered as anti-women. Therefore, the movement was seen as an anti-Trump protest by some people. But organizers, such as Carmen Perez and Tamika Mallory, insisted on the fact that it was a non-partisan event only aiming at ending racial profiling, and keeping access to abortion and birth control, among other issues.
“It’s not a march about Trump, the man… it’s a march about women’s rights that are very much imperiled by the policies President-elect Trump appears headed for,” said Terry O’Neill, the president of the National Organization for Women, as reported by PBS.
The 2017 rally has been the largest protest in U.S. history and one of the largest of the world. However, despite the attention and support garnered, there are controversies around the event. In Feb. 2018, Tamika Mallory, co-chair of Women’s March Inc. allegedly made anti-semitic remarks at the Nation of Islam’s Saviors’ Day event.
Vanessa Wruble, executive director of the organization, as reported by Vox confessed that “the controversy caused by Mallory’s declarations had people confused about whether or not they should march.” However, she added that it was important that everyone march.
Therefore, the controversy surrounding the Women’s March, brings out numerous questions: Has the Women’s March Inc. created too much tension among the females’ world? Is the march no longer what it once was?
There were people at the Women’s March who were not in full support due to the controversy. At the march in N.Y., when Agunda Okeyo, director of Women’s March, was delivering her speech, an audience member shouted out loud: “The Women’s March does not represent Jewish people! The Women’s March is the real Nazi Party!”
Also, in the wake of the allegations, the Democratic National Committee and other organizations, such as the Southern Poverty Law Center and Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington, had severed ties from the Women’s March in 2019. Similar to the organizations distancing themselves from the Woman’s March, there are various individuals who are not in favor of the woman’s march, including students on campus.
The turnout for the 2019 Women’s March was lower compared to previous years. It has been estimated at 60,000 in Washington D.C., considerably lower than an estimated 500,000 in the Washington D.C. march in 2017. Credit: @womensmarch
Monica Molina O’Neill, a senior at Saint Leo University, majoring in business management and minoring in religion, traveled to Washington with other students to participate at the Pro-life March, which is the day before the Women’s March. She did not attend the Woman’s March, but O’Neill shared her views on the movement. She said that despite the fact that she agrees with many of the purposes of the March, like ending violence, workers and civil rights she does not agree with their demand for reproductive rights that include abortions, the use of contraceptives, etc. According to O’Neill, the attitude of the women in the movement comes across as vengeful as she noticed people waving signs that insulted other people on her way to the Pro-life March.
“I believe that the Women’s March should be gone about in a more respectful manner; instead of being off- putting or vengeful in the way it seems to be, but rather empower women in what they are supposed to be as created by God, which is not a one size fits all. But we are also not men, which doesn’t make us unequal to men in terms of value or power, but just having a different makeup already gives us power,” she added.
The march for other people is one way to express their concerns and support the causes they care about. Camilla Starck, president of the organization World Citizens for Saudi Women, participated in the Women’s March in Stockholm, Sweden. She marched and gave a speech to support feminists in Saudi Arabia.
“By reading the statements from Saudi feminists and women suffering under male guardianship on a march like women’s march, the situation reaches a broad audience, and it makes people understand that no woman is free until we all are,” she shared.
Starck said that her experience was great. Usually, people in her country fear supporting Middle Eastern women because it can be a dangerous cause to support; but, according to Starck, this is not the case for Women’s March Stockholm, where they push for everyone to have equal rights. However, Starck is disappointed by the Women’s March U.S. She believes that the women show more support for Islam as a religion than the women who suffer from patriarchy in the Middle East.
“Women’s March Global is a movement from which I have very good experience but Women’s March U.S. seem to be way off in this aspect, ignoring suffering in the Middle East and focusing on promoting Islam in the U.S. it seems. How did feminism become a religious mission? To mix religious messages into a women’s march like they did in the U.S. is bashing every woman who suffers from religious politics,” said Starck.
Therefore, the controversies seem to be more in the U.S.A. than in other countries. As O’Neill and Starck agreed to, this rally is a great tool for women to share their complaints and opinions and should definitely persist. However, the main branch of the movement should revisit their objectives and be less insulting towards others since they are preaching acceptance and inclusion of each and every one.
