Women’s march in St. Louis draws big crowd, gives ‘renewed sense of the fight’

Thousands of marchers flooded downtown St. Louis on Saturday to rally not only for women’s rights, but for issues ranging from tolerance to climate change.

The march, held on Donald Trump’s first full day as president, was one of dozens taking place nationwide, including in Washington, D.C., where women and men marched in protest of the president’s agenda and world views.

“Climate change, women’s rights, LGBTQ rights and Planned Parenthood,” were on Edwardsville resident Sabrina Trupia’s list of reasons for attending the march, which attracted thousands of participants and shut down Market Street from 18th Street to the Gateway Arch grounds.

Marchers chanted slogans — “This is what community looks like” — and sang songs about freedom as they made their way down the thoroughfare. Organizers originally planned for marchers to travel on sidewalks, but the thousands of attendees made their way onto the streets.

Police quickly reacted to the crowd and blocked off traffic to the pathway so marchers could proceed. The sentiment between marchers and police was mostly peaceful, with marchers regularly thanking police for being there.

At the end of the route, marchers gathered between the Old Courthouse and the Arch to listen to local advocates for women’s rights, including U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill and Saint Louis University professor Ghazala Hayat.

McCaskill, a Democrat from Rolla, urged attendees to vote and “burn some shoe leather” for the causes they believe in. She added that she was inspired by the women, men and children who attended the march.

“Since the elections in Missouri in November, it has been a time of deep, deep introspection and thought about the state I love and the work I do,” McCaskill said. “Today, marching through this crowd, hugging and crying and feeling you, you have given me a renewed sense of the fight.”

The fight for Hayat, a neurology professor at SLU, means making sure individuals like her have rights. Hayat is Muslim, and said she hoped to empower people of all race, religion, sexuality and physical ability.

“We have constitutional rights, and we will not let any entity trample it,” Hayat said. “Diversity is the fabric of our society. That’s what makes this country great.”

Hayat also urged attendees to “reach out across the aisle” to connect with individuals of differing views.

“They are not our enemies,” she said. “Reach out to work with them.”

A sister march planned in Chicago drew a crowd estimated at 150,000, according to reports. But the march route became so crowded that organizers were forced to call off the march and hold only a rally.

This story was originally published January 21, 2017 at 7:23 AM with the headline "Women’s march in St. Louis draws big crowd, gives ‘renewed sense of the fight’."