Stay Woke: 15 Women and Men on Why They Marched in the Women’s March

“Hate and ignorance are intersectional, but so are empathy and love”

Chad Capellman: I was moved by the civility of a group that had every right to be angry but knew that winning meant respecting one another. I was amused by how the numbers totally got under our new president’s skin. I was tired because of how long it took to get a table afterward. I was impatient to see the 14-16 year olds at the march get old enough to vote. I was sad to see a sign say “you will die of old age/ we will die from climate change.” I was happy to march for those who couldn’t and I am cautiously optimistic that this will ultimately mean something.

Zaki Barzinji: I saw, firsthand, that while the forces of hate against our communities may be greater than we’ve seen in our lifetimes, so too are the forces of love and solidarity. Hate and ignorance are intersectional, but so too are empathy and love. I never imagined how emotionally overwhelming it would be just to walk in a sea of humanity and know that every person around me valued my life and freedom just as much as I did theirs. I also had no idea just how much I had been craving that simple feeling.

Next: Greater Than Any One Individual