Faces of the Los Angeles Women’s March

On Jan. 21, an estimated 750,000 citizens participated in the Los Angeles Women’s March, an inaugural protest aimed at recently-elected President Trump. Despite the organization as a Women’s March, the event amassed support for a number of social issues at the moment. LGBTQ rights, Black Lives Matter and immigrant rights were three issues that received prominent attention at the event.

Toward the ending hours of the protest, I visited the stage located on 6th street and spoke to several demonstrators on why they marched: (certain names were omitted for privacy and safety concerns)

Erica Williams (pictured right): “Well, today we’re dressed like the suffragettes in honor of the women who marched over a century ago to help win the right for us to vote, and they really paved the way for women’s rights but there’s such a long way to go and, over a century ago, women didn’t have voices until they all came together so we’re doing that today here as well.”

Jennifer Baker: “I’m out here so that my daughter doesn’t have to be out here someday.” When asked about her sign, she responded, “I feel like women have been protesting this s–t forever, and it’s time that we shouldn’t have to do this anymore. Like, our grandmothers, our great-grandmothers, have been asking for equal rights, for years and years, and it just should not be a question anymore. It should just be done, and our daughters should not have to worry about their future, our children should not have to worry about their future, there should be equal rights for everyone. No matter your race, your creed, your religion, no matter what, everyone should be equal and free.”

Gisele: “[I’m] demonstrating for LGBTQ rights, for human rights in general, environmental rights, Black Live Matters, [against] everything that sucks! [laughs] Explaining her unique sign, she said, “The other day I downloaded a model of an anatomically correct clitoris, and I made an animation and then I thought it would be appropriate to bring the clitoris into the protest.”

Nolan: “My purpose here was to contribute my energy to the galvanization of people who are really waking up, to stand up to a person like Donald Trump.”

Beau (pictured right) & Samuel (pictured left):

Beau: “I think that everybody has a right, any human being on this earth, and I believe that we’re in jeopardy of losing those rights.”

Samuel: “I came out here to see all the different messages that all the different people have gathered here to show us, and it’s been really neat getting all this information.”

Ben: “I think winning is overrated, perhaps, and is maybe part of our problem is that we emphasize winning too much, and maybe we should not at all. No competition.” What was your main purpose for demonstrating today? “To just make as much contact as possible with people, to share a text that I’ve been developing the last few weeks, and hopefully that text is compelling enough for me to stay out and in the street. I mean it’s really the text, it’s a message that keeps me out here, and sometimes my message is a little bit nuanced. But, I think that’s what’s kind of interesting about it. This is like, I’m an artist and I guess this is like the only form of performance art I really do. I do consider this, sort of, as a performance. Really, I don’t know. There are people around that I know but I haven’t seen any of them, I’ve just been kind of holding this sign, you know it’s like [saying] I’m here to do this.” So you’re here to political demonstrate or send an artistic message? “Well, I think through art you can, maybe through a poetic message, even though this one’s actually fairly direct, end win culture quote-unquote. I think that sometimes, art can touch somebody in a way that allows for the potential of another way of like thinking about things. So like kind of like on a systemic level, and like on a primal level I guess. So like, if we’re not concerned with winning, well shit, then all of this is just bullshit, kind of right? [laughs]