4th Women’s March is set for Saturday. Here’s the route and road closures for Sacramento
The 2020 Women’s March Sacramento will take place Saturday, with a 1-mile march downtown from Southside Park to the California state Capitol.
A rally begins at the park 9 a.m., with speakers, music, sign making and food trucks. The fourth annual march departs Southside Park at 10:30 a.m., and should arrive at the west steps of the state Capitol by 11:30 a.m.
The first Sacramento women’s march led 20,000 people up to the Capitol steps in January 2017, in the wake of President Donald Trump’s inauguration, as similar marches took place across the country.
Since then, women’s marches have been an annual staple at the state Capitol, regularly drawing thousands of participants to the streets of Sacramento.
Event organizers describe the march as standing for “solidarity for the protection of women’s rights as human rights” and “recognizing that our vibrant and diverse communities are the strength of our country.”
Sacramento women’s march lead coordinator, Scarlette Bustos, said the march is now under new leadership, and this year’s event will celebrate the centennial of the passage of the 19th Amendment, which guaranteed women’s suffrage.
“We hope to provide resources and to provide better understanding of the civil rights organizations that have been doing the work here in Sacramento,” Bustos said. “It’s about creating a vision of the future that we all want to see. In that vein, we are supporting a peaceful and positive vision and will be led by the most marginalized voices.”
One of the key issues for this year’s march, Bustos said, is the continued support of an Equal Rights Amendment to the Constitution.
Organizers are asking marchers to carpool, rideshare or take regional transit due to limited parking around Southside Park. Registration for the event isn’t required, but participants can sign up on Eventbrite to help have an accurate headcount for accommodations.
Several roads will be temporarily closed during the march, according to Sacramento Police spokesman Officer Karl Chan. Those closures around 8:30 a.m. surrounding Southside Park include:
- W Street between 6th and 8 streets
- 6th Street between T and W streets
- T Street between 6th and 10th streets
- 8th Street between T and W streets
- U Street between 8th and 9th streets
- V Street between 8th and 9th streets
As the march progresses, 9th Street from T Street to Capitol Mall will also be blocked during rolling closures beginning at 10:30 a.m. and ending around noon, Chan said.
This story was originally published January 16, 2020 at 5:00 AM.