WAKE UP! You have rights because others protested and chanted for you!!
To those who don’t support the 673 Women’s Marches around the world that totaled about 4.8 million people because you unfortunately don’t think inequalities exist- regardless of the data and research, don’t worry, luckily, we live in a country that allows us to protest for you!! In reality women within the US do not have full equality. We just do not.. Regardless of what you assume, there are inequalities, you just have the privilege of not seeing them.
Stephanie Dolce from Blogher.com wrote an article on a Facebook post by Brandi Goings Atkinson, and within her article Stephanie said:
“They call it a women’s march but it’s only for women who share the same thoughts and beliefs as they do. That means they are the women who believe, X, Y, and Z. Oh and hate Trump even though he hasn’t done anything yet. Way to be open. Way to be accepting. Way to NOT represent all women. I am all for equal pay with men, but marching and chanting isn’t going to do a damn thing. In fact, it’s going to do just the opposite. Trump won, get over it and also give him a chance. The Country needs UNITY not more DIVISION and all this does is keep up from getting together.”
Ok, Stephanie. Let’s have a chat about what you wrote.
A. You do understand that the women’s march was about human and equal rights. It seems that you assumed that because you saw some Trump signs that the march was about that. Well it wasn’t. Here is a link to WomensMarch.com and their Unity Principles. If you notice, there is nothing about Trump. It was about everything else. The march was about climate change, abortion, human rights, Trans rights, LGBT rights, reproductive rights and more. It was about whatever you wanted it to be about. You chose for it to be about Trump.
You say protesting and chanting “isn’t going to do a damn thing.” But I would have to disagree. You remember that whole Women’s Suffrage Movement? Remember when women received equal rights and voting rights in 1920? Well the protesting and chanting seemed to work, because BOOM- you got the right to vote. Funny how you have forgotten what “protesting and chanting” CAN DO.
Now let’s move on to those stupid little things call “civil rights”. The things that SEVERAL protests and chants were about, for many years in fact. It seems you have forgotten about them as well. The Civil Rights Act of 1965 was enacted after several years of protests and chants. So we might not want to be talking about the nonviolent protesting that allowed you to have equal rights and allowed me to have civil rights. In reality, the Women’s March was a voice for people for equality and human rights. Please don’t down play the fact that there were 673 marches with over 4.8 million PEOPLE attending. Not just women marching. But PEOPLE of all difference races, gender identities, classes, abilities, and more. There were small kids with signs, teenagers with signs, and people in wheelchairs with signs. Everyone had signs!
Now on to Brandi Goings Atkinson who wrote the statement. If you click on her name it will lead you to her Facebook page, I want to make sure credit is given where credit is due. The parts within her statement about being an American woman were very interesting.
“I am not a “disgrace to women” because I don’t support the women’s march. I do not feel I am a “second class citizen” because I am a woman. I do not feel my voice is “not heard” because I am a woman. I do not feel I am not provided opportunities in this life or in America because I am a woman. I do not feel that I “don’t have control of my body or choices” because I am a woman. I do not feel like I am ” not respected or undermined” because I am a woman. I AM a woman. I can make my own choices. I can speak and be heard. I can VOTE. I can work if I want. I control my body. I can defend myself. I can defend my family. There is nothing stopping me to do anything in this world but MYSELF.”
You do understand that you aren’t a “second class citizen” because the women’s suffrage movement gave you equality and the right to vote, but there are still inequalities. The Library of Congress spells out on their website, www.loc.gov, exactly what the women’s suffrage movement did to HELP you get to vote, work, control your body, and have economic equality.
“During the late 1800s and early 1900s, women and women’s organizations not only worked to gain the right to vote, they also worked for broad-based economic and political equality and for social reforms. Between 1880 and 1910, the number of women employed in the United States increased from 2.6 million to 7.8 million. Although women began to be employed in business and industry, the majority of better paying positions continued to go to men. At the turn of the century, 60 percent of all working women were employed as domestic servants. In the area of politics, women gained the right to control their earnings, own property, and, in the case of divorce, take custody of their children. By 1896, women had gained the right to vote in four states (Wyoming, Colorado, Idaho, and Utah). Women and women’s organizations also worked on behalf of many social and reform issues. By the beginning of the new century, women’s clubs in towns and cities across the nation were working to promote suffrage, better schools, the regulation of child labor, women in unions, and liquor prohibition.”
Basically everything that you are proud of was given to you by women who fought, were arrested, protested and chanted. Everything you want to downplay was given to you by someone who did those hated things. So no, nothing is stopping you, say thank you to the protestors from 1848 to 1920!!
If you want to impress me, especially in regards to women, then speak on the real injustices and tragedies that affect women in foreign countries that do not that the opportunity or means to have their voices heard. Saudi Arabia, women can’t drive, no rights and must always be covered.
China and India, infanticide of baby girls.
Afghanistan, unequal education rights.
Democratic Republic of Congo, where rapes are brutal and women are left to die, or HIV infected and left to care for children alone.
Mali, where women cannot escape the torture of genital mutilation.
Pakistan, in tribal areas where women are gang raped to pay for men’s crime.
Guatemala, the impoverished female underclass of Guatemala faces domestic violence, rape and the second-highest rate of HIV/AIDS after sub-Saharan Africa. An epidemic of gruesome unsolved murders has left hundreds of women dead, some of their bodies left with hate messages.
Next, you mentioned wanting to be impressed about speaking on real injustices, and I whole heartedly agree with you. But, if you believe that then you have no problem with the US accepting refugees and opening the borders to help people who are going through those atrocities. You can’t have a problem with it. But, sadly enough I see people who are against the march are also against accepting refugees and are against sending US tax dollars to help women. Wait a second. Can you really want to speak about the injustices but not actually help them? I hope not, because that would be hypocritical.
Let’s get back to Stephanie Dolce of Blogher.com in regards to her statement about protection.
“Where were you protecting our rights when that poor helpless woman was rapted behind a dumpster and the rapist served only 3 months?”
Oops. It seems you forgot about this armed protest outside Brock Turner’s home. Or maybe you forgot about this protest outside of the jail when Brock Turner was released. You obviously didn’t pay attention or even do a protest of your own. But that doesn’t matter it seems because people protested for you. The voices that came out of that protest crossed everything- class, race, gender, everything.
Stephanie, you just need to pay better attention to what really is going on and who is protesting.
Lastly, to Brandi. Brandi, “when women get together in AMERICA and whine they don’t have equal rights and march in their clean clothes, after eating a hearty breakfast, and it’s like a vacation away that they have paid for to get there…” it is because there were women before us who “whined” to allow all of us to have that ability. You seemed to have forgotten what was done before you, and that is a shame. You want to enjoy the benefits without acknowledging the past. Shame on you for enjoying the rights you have, yet complaining when the same type of protesting that got you those rights is occurring now.
Ladies, you need to take a deep look on what allowed you to do what you do now. It might give you a reason to truly see the greatness of what the Women’s March did, not only for the US, but for the world.
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