When a minority of the population elects someone whose every policy, whose every cabinet pick and senior staff member, and whose every statement goes against every value you hold dear you march and speak out. When a minority of the population elects someone who wishes to oppress those of the opposite sex, those whose skin is not white, those in need of publicly funded education, healthcare, food assistance, housing assistance, or retirement, and those holding differing religious views or sexual orientation or gender identity you march and speak out. These are some images I captured at the Boston Women’s March focusing on signs of protest.
Marching “Dick”tator
Marching “Dick”tator
Marching “Dicktator”
Reads: Uterus more highly regulated than semi-automatic weapons
And here I am feeling so much more joy than I was able to feel yesterday.
Hot Heels, Cool Kicks, & a Scalpel 
Dear Dr., I felt the exact same way when Obama was re- elected….
Refresher on Election Process- Trump, (as was Obama),is President of the States. The STATES elected the President. Our Congress is elected directly by the people.
Let’s Reflect- Consider one’s own “hot” spiked heels. Hot to whom? (Have some grace, Be a real woman.) Fact Check- You (as am I) are a “One Percenter”. You can afford a trip to “protest”. You can afford $200 shoes. The very women you protest for, however, can neither identify with any of it nor afford it. Those women are too busy working, taking care of themselves and their families. Your children(and your employers)are watching you closely. Consider the example you are setting. Protesting for a single class/gender/persuasion/ethnic group/religion is not only the antithesis of “equality”, it is divisive. We are ALL Americans. The very freedom and privilege you enjoyed as you protested is given to you under the Flag of the UNITED States of America. Try United. No one really cares that you are a woman surgeon. Be a great surgeon. No one really cares that you are a surgeon. Be a great woman.
More than anything else, consider praying for our elected leaders as well as this entire country .
Alternatively, one could Saudi Arabia
Leigh B Latham, M.D.
Dr. Latham,
As someone who benefited from quality K-12 public education, public housing assistance, and federally funded student loans and Pell Grants to be able to be comfortably in the top 1% today, I humbly disagree with you. As someone who gives her level best every day to help those in urgent need of surgical evaluation for injury and general surgery emergencies regardless of their sex, race, socioeconomic circumstances, I humbly disagree with you. As a mother who wants her children to see all humans as equal, I humbly disagree. I protested for equal wages. I protested for access to comprehensive reproductive health. I protested for saving our land and water. I protested for all the men and women of our great United States of America to have the right to love and marry whomever they choose. I was not protesting for a single class/gender/persuasion/ethnic group/religion as your suggest. I was protesting to keep those who may be of a different class/gender/persuasion/ethnic group/religion from oppressing everyone else because of their belief system.
Yours Sincerely.
From a fellow physician – Thank you for marching. We need our patients to see that strong women make great physicians and patient advocates.
Let me give you a different perspective.
Instead of marching, how about using the internet to get together and DO something about women’s situations?
The reason why I state this is that I didn’t march. However, when we still have women using the bathroom to pump milk, I found out just who was responsible for the pumping areas set aside for these women they aren’t using. I talked to the pumping women and found out things that made it hard for them to pump. One thing I can’t do a lot about (because each building can’t have one but at least they’ll put them so women only have to go the next building in each case).
However, I said why, when we have badges that let you in and out, are we requiring these women to go to another floor to get a key? Why can’t we make it for the badges so they just swipe in and out? And someone please tell me why they are single occupancy only? Put up some of the cloth blocks/shields that can be moved around, the Red Cross uses these for blood drives to shield people from view, and allow more than one woman to use the rooms at a time. They can encourage each other, come on, didn’t any one think of this? Swap stories and share problems and solutions.
Do they advertise by using HR and other groups in our large and spread out areas? How about in several languages since we’re a multi cultural area?
I got a THANK YOU in all caps. They said they would bring those up because they got asked to go around and find out how well the pump areas are working.
To that, my issue was, why don’t you ask these women? Get a poll going after a week or two, they can do all these surveys but they can’t ask women what would help them? I just went up and started asking the women I know.
I understand you feel there are issues. I support peoples’ right to protest peacefully and respectfully. But please don’t gripe and not DO something. I made a difference to more than one woman at my area because they are actually going to review policies, get more involved and spread the word. I didn’t have to go to a protest. I simply asked, listened, and sought out the right people to resolve some of their needs and issues. Targeted support.
Make a point to make a difference in your own community. You’re little area. Get off the TV, get off the phone, and take responsibility for being that change. I just made more of a difference to a lot of women. I didn’t have to protest to do it.
Vic, I assure you in my daily life I fight the fight for this kinds of issues you allude to. I suspect many of the folks marching around the country do the same. At the same time, surely there are some who do nothing but perhaps this is a first step for them to become brave enough to be the fighters for social justice and health equity and equal rights for all irrespective of race, class, gender, sexual orientation, religion…
I need to see proof of that. Not just I believe. None of the women I talked to did anything but grumble privately. I wasn’t and never will be affected. Yet who got some action?
Otherwise you aint going to get buy in. I’ve seen far too often people wait for the govt or everyone else to get off their duff or just post a change.org petition.
I was actually part of a larger protest once. We spoke with the business in question politely, respectfully, and stated what we were looking for in terms of change. The mgmt thanked us for our manner and approach, and had no problems with us. Even with a large group, they did not call the police, as our actions didn’t warrant it. We left after about an hour. It was a couple weeks later, they did agree to what we were asking.
Some big march doesn’t do anything without coordinated efforts at the local and state areas to getting change. The reason why legislators, powers that be, aren’t going to move is because a protest march once does nothing. They’ll let you talk and know that in a few weeks, nothing will come of it. There is no plan or thought as to how to carry that momentum into real action that will keep on local/state areas to start the change.
I’m being realistic here. If you want change, you have lay out a plan, give solid arguments, and be able to rebut the pros for the other side. That doesn’t mean ‘we are entitled’. You have to frame it so that the other side sees what is positive for them in it.