Our Women's March On Washington

1/23/2017

There comes a moment when you realize that if you don’t stand for something, you stand for nothing. And though that may seem redundant, it’s absolutely a part of my parenting philosophy. Like many women who felt the joy, elation, interest, wonder, and excitement of witnessing a woman fight so hard to run the cornerstone of the “free world” be criminalized, reduced, hated, and destroyed so viciously... we began to wonder if we’re really safe in our own homes, communities and in this country. And to our sisters who are still sleeping, the answer is in fact “no” by the way… sorry. I mourned for weeks, unable to justify my purpose or even the empowering statements I used with my daughters to encourage them to see themselves as equal to their male counterparts. Please read the poem: Let's Stop Lying To Our Daughters

Thanksgiving was dark. Christmas was dark. New Year’s day was very dark. With the fall of our trust in healing communities like Pantsuit Nation and even seeing some family and friends as social media Judases, I began to wonder if any of what we do is really worth it.

But with the Women’s March on the horizon, I began to see hope. Hope that being a black woman in America is respected. Hope that white women and women of all colors can come together to create a feminism for all women. Hope that even if gradual changes and forward movement is slow, there are people like me who see the world as an opportunity for pushing equality for all people. This is why I decided to go to the Womens March on Washington. This is why I decided to take my daughters.

The week leading up to the march, was a blur of excitement, preparation, and a bit of apprehensive worry. I designed T-shirts, we brainstormed our signs, we talked about why we are going down there. We were ready to participate in an historic moment. We later found out we were going to be interviewed by the New York Times! Listening to my daughter speak so candidly with the reporter, reinforced my sense of justification for the teachings of tolerance, love, and empowerment that flow so easily through our home. Between her father and I, I now know for sure that we are heading down the right path.

I never expected the day to become a reality TV moment that would allow my family to share our values with the rest of the world. We were photographed the night my mother arrived from Atlanta and we were followed by two videographers the day of. This meant that we had the responsibility to positively influence others with our message. We weren’t pushing hate for Trump or for his constituency. We stood for women of color; we stood for the middle class; we stood for freedom of choice; we stood for affordable healthcare; we stood for an historic understanding of who you are and what you are capable of… we stood for all the people who wanted to but could not go.

To me, the Women’s March was the biggest hug we could give each other. It was the biggest shoulder cry we could have. It was the biggest, “get back up and get out there girl” we could say to each other. Down on the national mall the air was filled with love not anger. There were so many creative signs and costumes... and then there were the pussyhats. OMG. Witnessing the sea of women getting on the DC metro and on social media who either made or receive a cathartic act of love was refreshing. As the events of the march unfolded before us, I realized the level of impact this march would have on not only my kids but kids all over the country. This was a big deal.

We are so grateful for the opportunity to share our experience through the New York Times. I mean, I can’t express how much the photographer Ty and videographers Ben and Brent were so much fun to work with. (I even got a bit of Digital Media professional development by observing them master their craft!) And I can’t express how grateful I am to the reporter Yamiche for choosing us to share our personal story of the march. I hope that more media outlets will continue to give regular people a voice, sharing their human stories with the world.

Women must begin to see themselves as an integral part of changing the course of history. This march was not a march against Trump, or a march for abortion. This march was an opportunity for women to express what they stand for and will NOT stand for. I encourage the continued work between women and men, white women and women of color, cis women and trans-women. No group will move forward if we do not respect, and listen to each other. We will move forward without each other. When we allow ourselves to be uncomfortable and vulnerable, we will progress.

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Our Women's March On Washington

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