‘It’s energizing. And it’s reaffirming.’ More than 10,000 march at 4th annual Sacramento Women’s March
Thousands of people participated in Saturday’s demonstration for reproductive rights, immigration reform and environmental equity at the Sacramento Women’s March in downtown Sacramento, in what was among the state’s strongest showing for the four-year-old protest.
The Sacramento Police Department estimated between 10,000 and 12,000 people attended the march throughout the day, which is roughly the same number at last year’s march.
While this year’s crowd was less than the estimated 20,000 who attended in 2017 and 36,000 in 2018 many were laser focused on November’s election and the hope of removing President Donald Trump, whose inauguration sparked the national grassroots movement four years ago.
A sea of pink hats moved from a gathering at Southside Park at 9 a.m., to a march up 9th Street and the steps of state Capitol by noon. Several speakers and performers joined together at the rally there.
Sacramento City Councilwoman Angelique Ashby, who represents Natomas and is the only woman on the nine-person board, reminded the crowd why they rose up to fight four years ago.
“We started this effort four years ago because we were angry and disgusted,” Ashby said. “How could a man who treats women so vulgarly even be considered for the top office of the United States of America? Forget his politics, he’s not morally fit for the position.”
“It’s been four years of insults and division and Twitter temper tantrums and we’re done. The people he has selected to oversee our most important offices in the nation, education, environment and even the Supreme Court are not worthy of their posts. And yet we have survived.”
Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg and state Sen. Dr. Richard Pan, D-Sacramento, were among the community leaders taking part in the event.
Mikaila Walton has attended every march in Sacramento since its inception and said she is hopeful to one day see a woman elected president.
“It’s energizing. And it’s reaffirming to have the shared goal of seeing women elected to office and supporting women,” Walton said. Walton also added that while Trump’s election was one of the main catalysts for the rally, it helped to unearth building feelings of oppression.
After the second rally, musical performances from Sacramento native Yelly and Canadian-born Ruby Velle followed, before wrapping up festivities for the day.
An estimated 12,000 people marched in the San Francisco demonstration, along with about 5,000 in Oakland and 7,500 in San Jose, according to the San Jose Mercury News. California’s First Partner, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, attended Los Angeles’ march, which was attended by several thousand women and men as well, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The wife of Gov. Gavin Newsom linked the movement to the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote, and noted the increasing number of women in politics as evidence of the progress made in since 2017.
“In 2020, I have no doubt that it will be women who lead again, rise up and move this country forward on a path to justice,” she said. “As Governor Newsom says, as California goes, so will go the country.”
California ranks 21st for gender parity in state government with less than one-third of its legislative seats filled by female lawmakers, a recent study by Rutgers University’s Eagleton Institute of Politics found. That’s up from a ranking of 32 out of 50 in 2013.
Women hold 35 elected positions in Sacramento — 11 in the state senate and 20 in the Assembly, as well as offices for Lieutenant Governor, Controller, Treasurer and a seat on the Board of Equalization.
Nineteen women serve California in Congress, also about one-third of the entire state delegation in Washington D.C., according to the non-profit association California Women Lead. That includes both senate seats.
This story was originally published January 18, 2020 at 4:40 PM.