Many New Britain residents joined a seemingly never ending train of marchers who streamed toward the State Capitol Saturday, January 20th, 2018 for the second annual Women’s March.
Thousands of people marched and rallied at the State Capitol for women’s rights and the rights of many others in the United States. The March was one of many “anniversary events” taking place nationwide one year after the historic Women’s March on Washington on January 21, 2017.
Several New Britain City Council members were in attendance, including the Council’s leader, the President Pro-Tempore, Ald. Eva Magnusnewski (D-AL), Ald. Iris Sanchez (D-3) and Ald. Katie Breslin (D-AL).
New Britain State Representative Bobby Sanchez (D-25) commented online, from the March, that, “There must be over 10,000 here.”
A local organization, “New Britain Book Club,” joined the rally as a team, wearing pink t-shirts made for the occasion over their coats and sweaters saying, “March for Women’s Lives. We Read, We March, We Vote.”
According to the national Women’s March organization:
The mission of the Women’s March organization is to harness the political power of diverse women and their communities to create transformative social change. Women’s March is a women-led movement providing intersectional education on a diverse range of issues and creating entry points for new grassroots activists & organizers to engage in their local communities through trainings, outreach programs and events. Women’s March is committed to dismantling systems of oppression through nonviolent resistance and building inclusive structures guided by self-determination, dignity and respect.
The principles of the Women’s March include:
- Ending violence against women and communities of color.
- Reproductive rights.
- LGBTQIA rights.
- Workers’ rights.
- Civil rights.
- Disability rights.
- Immigrant rights.
- Environmental justice.
The 2017 Women’s March, which included marches in cities across the country, took on great significance in the wake of the election of Republican President Donald Trump. The organizers for the Hartford March in 2017 wrote:
The incoming administration was ushered in by a minority of U.S. citizens, on a wave of intolerance and bigotry. We stand united with our sisters and brothers of every race, religion, ethnic, gender and sexual minority to work for a positive world safe and equal for all. We stand together with the most vulnerable, those threatened rhetorically with ignorance and hate, and those threatened legislatively with having their rights reduced or eliminated. We believe in a United States which is fair and equal for all. We will fight against any threat to the rights of others, and we stand together with those in need. We believe that the response to hate is unity and community building and we will organize and work to make that happen.
Marchers at the 2018 rally chanted, “Hey, hey. Ho ho. Donald Trump has got to go,” as they worked their way to the State Capitol. Many carried signs advocating for women’s right’s, immigrant rights, LGBTQ rights, workers’ rights, among others. Organizers worked the crowd, networking and building organization on a range of issues, such as paid family and medical leave.
The unseasonably warm weather infused the event with an air of optimism and energy, and one New Britain resident noted online that a rainbow appeared in the sky over the Capitol above the marchers.
