"As we go marching, marching the future hears our call"

[browngirl]

"The rising of the women means the rising of us all"
I took Friday off from the Internet, mostly. Today was a good day to return.

Over 100K people marched in Boston alone. Likely upwards of a million country-wide. ANd people marched in solidarity in many cities across the world!

It's probably ridiculous of me, but I feel hopeful, for the first time in a long time, seeing that many people stand up and defy the new Preident and everyone who voted for him because their dreamt-of version of making America "Great again" means regaining the freedom to oppress their fellow citizens.

(I have so many essays I want to write, including one about what we looked forward to when Obama was elected vs what Trump's supporters are looking forward to now, or, the false equivalence of "we put up with your president for 8 years, shut up and put up with ours")

It was awe inspiring and splendiferous to see the size and diversity of the marches, including people refusing to let anything get swept under the rug -- I saw signs calling all the attendees to the next Black Lives Matter rally as well, signs decrying Islamophobia and anti-Semitism and homophobia and the whole culture of bigotry. And comments on the march have inspired me to think about how, as a cis woman, I can keep from equating organs with gender, how to discuss feminism and the challenges women face (including sexist metonymy) without excluding trans women. I was thinking about that even as I delighted in all the pussy hats.

As someone wise said to me, "I just hope people sustain the energy we saw today". I hope so too. I intend to try. At least right now I feel like I CAN try.

And now, some links.

Dan Rather said everything I needed to know about the Inauguration:
https://www.facebook.com/theDanRather/posts/10158076123200716

"Hope" artist Shepard Fairey's newest political art:
https://azephirin.tumblr.com/post/156145272942
All so gorgeous but my favorite is the hijabi .

Today in pareidolia: https://mobile.twitter.com/FacesPics/status/822605304013746178/photo/1

And the newest Avengers team looks awesome:
https://mobile.twitter.com/ohjefframos/status/822304011793534978/photo/1

(Seriously, tweets that made me cheer. Mirabile visu!)

Comments

The Protest Song I Quoted

[browngirl.livejournal.com]

Bread and Roses James Oppenheim, 1912

As we go marching, marching in the beauty of the day
A million darkened kitchens, a thousand mill lofts grey
Are touched with all the radiance that a sudden sun discloses
For the people hear us singing “Bread and Roses! Bread and Roses!”

As we go marching, marching we battle too for men
For they in the struggle and together we shall win
Our lives shall not be sweated from birth until life closes
Hearts starve as well as bodies; give us bread but give us roses!

As we go marching, marching unnumbered women dead
Go crying through our singing their ancient call for bread
Small art and love and beauty their drudging spirits knew
Yes, it is bread we fight for, but we fight for roses too!

As we go marching, marching the future hears our call
The rising of the women means the rising of us all
No more the drudge and idler, ten that toil where one reposes
But a sharing of life's glories, Bread and roses! Bread and roses!

Our lives shall not be sweated from birth until life closes
Hearts starve as well as bodies, Bread and roses! Bread and roses!

[juliansinger.livejournal.com]

*hums your subject line*

Best song I sang today was We Shall Overcome, because my section of stuff was mostly chanting a lot, not singing.

My favorite is also the hijabi, and there were a bunch of her poster downtown.

Anyway. I say, here's to hope.

[acelightning.livejournal.com]

[gingicat]

New lyrics? *perks ears*

[acelightning.livejournal.com]

[med_cat]

These are very good, thank you; I like the subtle changes in the new lyrics :)

[acelightning.livejournal.com]

[med_cat]

:)

[cmcmck.livejournal.com]

Big protests here too.

We're not forgetting you even with all our own problems.

[hand2hand.livejournal.com]

But see, they DIDN'T put up with Obama. They opposed him continually. So yeah.

[songquake.livejournal.com]

Yup.

[redbird]

Way over a million: Los Angeles was at least 750,000, Chicago somewhere over 150,000, probably a quarter of a million who went to DC, 100,000 in New York City…I didn't think I was Twitter following anyone remotely activist in LA, what I saw about LA is from a planetary astronomer at Caltech.

Also, there were marches and rallies on all seven continents. Yes, even in Antarctica.

[cmcmck.livejournal.com]

100,000 in London and that's a long way from the US!

[secretsolitaire.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the link to that Dan Rather post -- hadn't seen it. And I agree, I feel hopeful after marching yesterday. ♥

[ron_newman]

[shirebound]

Thank you for linking to Shepard Fairey's art. So wonderful!

[chienne-folle.livejournal.com]

I did something terrible to my knee and wasn't able to march, but my sister-in-law went to the march in NYC, and she sent us pictures of a couple of signs I think you'll like:

[ron_newman]

I can't see the photos.

[chienne-folle.livejournal.com]

Unfortunately, when I uploaded the picture, LJ gave me the options of "Friends," "Custom," or "Private;" I wasn't given a "Public" option. So only people on my flist can see it; I'm sorry for that.

[med_cat]

Thanks for the link to Dan Rather's post and that French Twitter pic is too funny ;)

[sabotabby]

This is the least despairing I've felt since November.

[annonynous.livejournal.com]

Oh, yes, yes, yes to the new Avengers team! I hope they give HIM hell.

Ann O.

[johnpalmer.livejournal.com]

Thanks especially for the Dan Rather link. That summed up my feelings nicely.