Women's Rights | Women's March on Washington

In January, I attended the Women’s March on Washington, held the day after the Inauguration. A few friends and I drove down early in the morning and found a metro stop. Immediately, I was overwhelmed by the number of people who came out in support of this cause. Stop after stop, more and more people boarded the metro trains until they were packed to full capacity, all donning pink hats. The turnout was enormous. Women who marched years ago were marching side by side with their granddaughters. The day was long and cold, but it was an amazing experience filled with inspiring women from all walks of life.

However, not every woman around the world has the right to assemble and speak up like we do, and it’s important that we become aware of these worldwide issues. In Saudi Arabia, women are still unable to drive (it is the last ban of its kind left in the world). In many countries in Africa, women have limited access to land and wealth, and remain at the bottom of the social hierarchy. A higher percentage of women struggle with poverty than men.

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In Iran, women are able to be married at age 13, before being allowed to vote. They are unable to leave the country, or watch men’s sports in an arena. The Human’s Right’s Watch has launched the #Watch4Women campaign, which simply asks the International Volleyball Federation (Iran’s most popular sport) to ban tournaments from being held in Iran unless women can attend. Simple rights like this are the ones some women and girls take for granted. Joining campaigns such as this one, or the recent Day Without a Woman, can raise It is important that we all ensure that women of every kind know that our generation has their backs.

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