On January 21, 2018, the second annual Women’s March took place across the nation to advocate for policies regarding human rights and bring together men and women to partake in civil action.

These marches consisted of motivational speakers and stands that promoted different movements, such as Black Lives Matter and LGBTQA.

Marches in Florida took place in St. Petersburg and Gainesville. Many Freedom High School graduates and current students attended these marches and enjoyed their experience with fellow activists.

Josie Clark, 10, attended her first march last Sunday and found the movement to be unifying and powerful. She hopes to see even more people join next year.

Clark stated, “The march really opened my eyes to how many good people there are in the world, but I still want to see more men and women promoting gender equality.”

The Women’s March began almost immediately after the election of President Donald Trump and will continue to strive for the protection of rights, health and safety for all women and their communities.

Anastasia Sukhenko is a Freedom graduate who found the atmosphere inspiring and optimistic.

Sukhenko claims, “It was cool to be around so many purposeful and encouraging people. The march really made me feel happy to see so many people supporting one another and feeling motivated.”

Since the first march in 2017, a growing number of women have started running for local offices and multiple organizations have received more support than ever in order to seek a change within the system.

Tori Chin, another former Freedom student, described the protest as a great turnout with people of all ages.

Chin stated, “There were speakers at the beginning that had really educational and inspiring things to say. Someone even spoke about how she was raped and had to get an abortion. There were also supporting car honks from moms in mini vans and just a variety of people who were happy to see us.”

In order to seek a better future for women, it is important to support and uplift one another while taking the time to listen and learn about the issues at hand.

Chin explains, “I can’t stand when people say there’s no point. Because there are a lot of inequalities that aren’t apparent and take listening and learning to see things that the ‘celebration of women’ provided.”