Women by the millions took to the streets of cities across the United States on Jan. 22. Some were dressed in flamboyant and eye-catching costumes. Most were holding signs with a wide array of messages. 

At the larger marches in Washington, D.C., celebrities and activists gave speeches to the detriment of the newly inaugurated president of the United States. So, what exactly was the motivation for these marches? What brought women out en masse to walk the city streets in protest? Was there a commonality of their raised voices, a unity in their cause? While most may have their own personal reasons for marching, was there some underlying reason to bring them together?

Speaking with Amanda Wright, a citizen of Pell City who attended the Women’s March in Birmingham, she listed her reasons for marching. “I marched because I am tired of being told to stay quiet and be a lady. I marched because I am tired of people telling me to not be so sensitive to vulgar and rude comments made about my body. I marched because I am tired of fighting for equality. I marched because my vote was not heard. I marched to show others they are not alone. I marched because my father taught me to stand up for myself. I marched because I am an American and have been given the right to do so. And last but not least, I marched for those who have come before me and already paid the price. I am proud to be an American.”

It is estimated that around 5,000 women and men marched in downtown Birmingham last Saturday. 

“The atmosphere was very peaceful. It was surreal to be marching in the same footsteps of the Civil Rights Movement,” Wright said.

One grievance mentioned was that they felt like their vote and voices were not heard. Women had to fight a long battle to earn the right to vote. That battle began in the United States in the 1820s and 1830s, when many reform groups were growing throughout the young United States. Women had vast involvement with temperance clubs, religious movements, moral reform, and anti-slavery organizations. During the 1850s, the Women’s Movement was deterred when the Civil War began. After the war ended the Fifteenth Amendment was passed in 1870 granting black men the right to vote. The question of women’s rights was once again in the forefront. 

The National American Woman Suffrage Association was created in 1890 with Elizabeth Cady Stanton as president of the organization. Stanton was a leader of the Women’s Rights Movement for over 50 years, along with her friend and ally Susan B. Anthony. 

Stanton was also the first woman to ever run for Congress in 1866. Beginning in 1910, some states in the West granted women the right to vote but states in the East and South resisted. In 1916 an organized effort began concentrating on these states while the National Women’s Party focused on more radical tactics like hunger strikes and White House pickets, which resulted in many arrests. 

During World War I, women’s contributions to the war effort helped to advance their cause that women were deserving of the full benefits of United States citizenship, most prominently the right to vote. After a hundred years of petitions, speeches, marches, and meetings, women were finally granted the right to vote on Aug. 26, 1920, with the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. While many may not agree with all of the concerns raised by those marching today, we should respect their right to do so. Our right of free speech, the press, and to peacefully assemble and petition the government concerning any grievances is protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution, which now includes every citizen of the United States independent of race, religion, sexual orientation, or gender.