A Smaller Women’s March Adapts to a New Era of Trump

Now named the People’s March, the organizers behind the resistance movement say they’re broadening their scope and going local.

DC: The People's March

Roughly 50,000 demonstrators joined the People’s March in Washington, D.C., ahead of Donald Trump’s inauguration. Annabelle Gordon/Sipa USA via AP

Saturday’s march in Washington bore all the resemblances to the Women’s March that happened eight years ago. There were quippy signs, strident chants and a sea — albeit a much smaller one — of people from all over, impassioned in their resistance to Donald Trump. Even the pussyhats made a return.

But behind the scenes, there’s widespread acknowledgment that the original movement has transfigured.

“I think the reality of eight years ago is that the Women’s March as an organization did not exist prior to the march. We’ve spent the last eight years navigating the growing pains of being an infant organization but with a big spotlight on it,” Tamika Middleton, managing director of Women’s March, told NOTUS ahead of the event.