WHY I MARCH
Today is a biggie. People across the world will gather in cities and stand up for equality. I’m excited to take part in an event I feel will be historic, and one that I will remember for a long time. However, incredibly, not everyone is in favour of a march for equality. People on social media are falling over themselves to debate even the point of such an event.
In an ideal world, the person being elected for President of the United States are meant to be squeaky clean, with an impressive political service record and no skeletons in the closet. As I said, that’s the ideal, which the reality might not always live up to.
But then there’s the reality we’re in now, which is so far from that ideal it’s untrue. It’s a reality where a man currently being sued for sexual assault has got himself the top job. There is a much wider story here about the state of our society; how is a man bragging that he can grab women by the pussy not enough to put people off voting him into the White House? It speaks volumes on the current climate of sexual assault and proves that we still need to bring more attention to gender inequality and our attitudes to women. So this weekend, today, I am marching with thousands of women in London, as part of a series of protests that are taking place in over 30 countries around the world, to spread a message of inclusiveness and positivity. Sounds like a no brainer, right?
Obviously, not everyone agrees. There has been a lot of action on Twitter this week with the #RenameMillionWomenMarch hashtag causing controversy left and right. Reminiscent of the ‘All Lives Matter’ reaction to the Black Lives Matter movement, people have been arguing to rename today’s march(es) to something that doesn't make women the focus, or undermines the ideals behind the event. People use the hashtag to lash out at feminists, labelling women as stupid or whiny. I myself got into a heated Facebook exchange with a stranger, as he hijacked my friend’s post about placards by explaining to her why the whole march is politically misguided and we should 'see what happens.' He said that the march is irresponsibly making the LGBT community fear for their lives. He said that the poster had a big heart so she should be careful getting involved because people will 'use emotions.' He even gave some recommended reading 'for a challenge.'
And we don’t need a march for equality?
This is just one example that has affected me personally this week. When I challenged what the man had said, he kept reiterating that he was offering an alternative view because 'knowledge is a good thing' - at the same time, completely oblivious to the fact that he was entirely unwilling to take my opinion on board. One annoying conversation I had this week on social media isn't, itself, the point so I don't want to focus on it too much. But it is indicative of the kind of (for lack of a better word) SHIT that women are faced with every day. And that’s just the women who have the luxury of having their misogyny dished up to them in the form of discussions on Facebook about generalised issues.
What about all the other women facing sexual assault, domestic violence, inequality, poverty every day? And what about all the other people in the world, women or not, who are affected by racism, xenophobia and discrimination?
I’ll reiterate the point I made in my little online spat this week; if you don’t understand the point of this march then frankly I’m happy for you. Because you, I suppose, don’t feel personally affected by these issues?
Anyone making this out as a case of sour grapes over a lost election is critically missing the point. For one, it’s not just a national issue; we didn’t see millions of people across the globe marching after the Brexit vote, the outcry and demonstrations were mainly concentrated to people who were unhappy with the result. This isn’t just about people who wish Hillary had won, or even limited to the people who had the opportunity to vote, but about coming together in solidarity to draw attention to the moral crisis we seem to find our society in, where we just don’t care about people enough, or think we’re better.
That’s why I march. See you there, London!