Women's March, Denver

On January 20, the 2018 Women’s March drew more than fifty thousand people to downtown Denver. That’s about half the number that attended last year, but more than enough to send a very clear message to the White House.

The demonstrators included me – although in all honesty, what most drew me were the photo ops.

I attended last year’s Denver march, too. I heard a joke around that time, possibly from Stephen Colbert: Trump set a new record for being rejected by more women in a single day than any other man in history.

During last year’s rally the local transit system was totally unprepared for the number of riders, and was quickly overwhelmed. I ended up hitching a ride, thanks to the kindness of strangers. Recalling that, I went up to the bus stop at 5am this time, and wound up at Union Station downtown way, way too early. But I knew that might happen, and brought enough reading material to easily kill a few hours in a bagel place.

The march was set to begin at 10am, with a rally starting at nine. That horde of fifty thousand represented a good cross-section of America, with women and men of all ages and colors. It impressed me to see so many people simultaneously cheerful, upbeat, and pissed off.

“This is not just a white women’s movement,” one woman was quoted in the local press. “We have to stand in solidarity with the many people that are not just rich white men, who have not been given equal rights, opportunities, housing and jobs. It’s about how important it is that everyone has a story and these stories can inspire us to fight for change.”

The rally began with a prayer, said in Navajo. I couldn’t understand a word. Just before delivering it, the speaker said in English that its themes were peace, love, and unity. I support these ideals but suspect they are alien to Trump.