A Peaceful, Collective Journey For Women on January 21, 2017

I purposely positioned my desk and computer to face out a huge window overlooking my front yard, 70’ blue spruce tree, 6 maple trees and a horse farm across the street. I believe work is enhanced when you have beauty to view.

Living in Syracuse, New York means when beautiful Lake Ontario graces us with fun, sun and pink sunsets in the summer, we can expect snow to rage wildily in the winter if the winds are just right. As I looked up at my pine tree, little tiny snowflakes are crashing into each other as if they have no direction.

In an instance the snowflakes resembled how people are reacting after the presidential election. All the emotions, conversations and actions are as frantic as these snowflakes being driven by the harsh wind. If there wasn’t wind to fuel the snowflakes movement, they would peacefully settle down at their own pace to the ground. But instead of floating and settling, they are propelled speedily around bumping into each other.

I have had to defend my feminist voice more recently to people I didn’t expect to although I’ve voiced it for 22 years. The reason is because we are taking two buses of women to Washington DC on January 21, 2017 to be part of the million women landscape in our national’s capital. Our foremothers did it. I will do it and I’m bringing like minded women with me. It is not a sin. It is not a revolt. It is a peaceful reminder that the United States is made up of women – 52% in fact – that need their rights and other human rights not forgotten with the new all male, white administration so far.

Just like a snow pile can’t block the view of a window unless enough of them collect in height and length, the reminder that women’s rights and human rights must be remembered in Washington, will be seen when a million women and their supporters create their own “snow pile” of a million of them together in solidarity in January.