I got to participate in the Portland Women's March today and I just want to bottle up this feeling. I liken it to how I felt after Christian summer camp, where you experience a high so intense you just never want to come back down. Inevitably you do, but I want to ride this wave of optimism and hope as long as I can. I've never had the high experience in such a big way politically. I am so moved and grateful and proud that we were 100,000 strong today. For those of you not in this area, that is 10 percent of the city's population. It gives me goosebumps. I don't want to live anywhere else. Ever.
The sense of solidarity. The massive diversity. The signs that made you laugh. The signs that made you think. The sense of hope. The power of numbers. I just wish everyone who wanted to be there could have been. And that's part of why I want to preserve this feeling, to pass it along. I feel like for every person in the 100k today, there were 10 more behind them unable to attend who would have liked to participate. And there are so, so many reasons not to protest. It was pouring rain. It's inconvenient. It's time-consuming. It can be dangerous. There are always other things that need tending to (I ended up with a sick kid at home today who I was so saddened to leave). There are so many reasons to not march. So many people I knew were traveling, working or physically unable to march.
I just want you to know that protesting matters. That seeing the numbers come in meant something. To me. To the whole world who marched with us today. Not just Americans. People in Antarctica protested, dude. Participating gave me so much hope. I can't tell you how many conversations I overheard on the MAX of people saying how alone they've been feeling and how encouraging and empowering marching was for them. THERE ARE SO MANY OF US. No matter who's in office, we will not abandon our principles. We will not back down from fighting for the rights of every human in this country. And how that plays out in the world has a huge effect as well. We matter. And we will make our voices heard. If you're worried about this new administration revoking your hard-earned rights, your health care, your security, we will fight for you. We will speak up. We are reading and we are chanting and we are marching. This is just the beginning. You are loved. You matter. We want to dismantle privilege and make sure everyone has equal access to resources and human rights.
I had to leave a sick kid at home today. And I did not get to bring my oldest with me because she had a theater commitment. But I was mothering today in a big way. I mother my own children in marching for their rights as girls, proclaiming that their pussies are their own (not up for grabs, thank you), and that they are so much more than ornamental. I mothered all the people who need an advocate and someone to look out for them today. As someone with white privilege who wants to participate in dismantling systemic racism, I stood up to be counted as an ally. We are women. We are so, so strong. I truly believe women have the capacity to endure so much more shit than any other demographic and we will persevere. We have and we will continue to do so. And we will carry the burdens of others and fight til this is done.
It was incredible to witness the diversity of the crowd today. Young, old, white, black, brown, male, female, trans, Jew, Christian, atheist...it moved me to tears repeatedly. I saw tiny children and little old couples marching and I just about died of pure joy. We really can make a difference. We really do have hope, tangible, transferable hope. We really do care about our fellow man. And while many today will climb back into their unsupportive communities and feel alone again in time, we know that there are MILLIONS of people willing to get soaked to the bone to remind their fellow woman, child and man that we care. We strengthened each other today and we sent a global message that bigotry will not go unnoticed on our watch. Our eyes are wide open and we will not be quiet. Thank God.