While this year’s official event was set in Nevada, other women’s march chapters held hundreds of their own gatherings throughout the country. This year’s agenda focused on peacefully empowering women to run for public office on all levels.

Supporters gathered locally at the Marquette Commons around 1 p.m. Organizations such as Planned Parenthood, Zonta, the League of Women Voters and others held up inside the commons building and provided information to interested individuals. Pink hats and buttons were also available for purchase at the fundraising table.

Around 2 p.m. a long line of people marched down Main Street, looped around the block and marched down Front and Washington streets while waving signs and saying “we are powerful — we are unstoppable” and “we will not be silenced.”

Marchers gathered in front of the U.S. Post Office and on surrounding blocks around 2:30 p.m. Vehicles passing by honked and waved, many with their thumbs up.

Before marching to the U.S. Post Office Sunday afternoon, thousands of supporters of the Marquette women's march gathered at the Marquette Commons. (Journal photo by Jaymie Depew)

Morning Thunder Drum Group opened the event with a Native American blessing and drum performance.

Shortly after, five speakers from different backgrounds addressed a variety of issues concerning human rights and the need for more females in elected positions.

Among the speakers were Katie Fink, a professional photographer, mother and breast cancer survivor; Lali Khalid, a photographer from Pakistan who lives in Marquette; Brooke Tharp and Lawryn Brown, co-presidents from Northern Michigan University’s group Women for Women; Bryan Newland, the president of the Bay Mills Indian Community, and his young daughter, Meredith; and PJ Stephens, a member of Forward Action Michigan and a suicide prevention advocate.

Fink, who had part of her body exposed, addressed the large crowd first.

“I know how important this day is. I am so fortunate to be here because I’m alive. The leading chant of my speech today is ‘meow.’ I’m half naked today because I survived breast cancer,” she said. “Society’s view on what feminine looks like is changing.”

Fink thanked supporters as well as her husband and children, through many ‘meows,’ and claps. Three of her children she thanked are from Haiti.

“To my sons and my daughter from Haiti, don’t you ever forget your roots, they are deep,” she said. “You come from beautiful and resilient people that every day chose to overcome. I respect you and I love you and I’m here for you; here’s a big meow.”

Khalid, who is originally from Pakistan talked about prejudices she’s encountered since moving to the U.S.

“There have been many incidents since then where I have felt like an outsider and like I don’t belong — and it’s not because how I see me, it’s how people see me,” she said. “The most recent of it was last year after Trump was elected. I was sitting at my physical therapist’s office and a guy was asked by his physical therapist what he thought of the election. And he turned around and said, ‘That’s great that Trump is in the office now, all these brown people can go back where they came from.’ And I remember the shock, the disbelief of somebody being so openly racist toward me. I would like to believe the majority of the U.S. is not like that.”

Bryan Newland and his young daughter Meredith Newland, both part of the Bay Mills Indian Community, praised women coming forward for change.

“It has been women, leading the way to expose systematic sexual abuse and harassment in the highest levels of our corporations and government … and it has been women forcing long-needed changes to our culture in this country,” Bryan Newland said.

Meredith thanked “kids” for being involved because it’s important that they know what’s going on in the world.

“Many people think that men are supposed to be our leaders because they are stronger but some of the best leaders have been women,” she said. “There are many women here today that could turn out to be great leaders in the future. I look forward to voting for you.”

Co-presidents for NMU’s Women for Women organization, Lawryn Brown and Brooke Tharp, talked about women and human rights.

“Every movement begins somewhere. The women’s march is a good start but it can’t stop here,” Brown said. “We must break out of our comfort zones to confront day-to-day injustices like micro-aggressions and comments made out of ignorance.”

Tharp added, “Now we’re all here for different reasons, we are gathered here for love for others.”

PJ Stephens, who was the last speaker at the event, talked about personal encounters they had over years as a LGBTQIA individual.

“I stand here in front of you today. I’m a United States veteran,” Stephens said. “I’m a completely unprotected class. I have been denied being able to rent housing, I have been kicked out of establishments, I have sat 20 rooms away from a loved one’s at a hospital because I couldn’t visit.”

Somebody from the audience yelled out, “It’s a crime.”

Stephens agreed, saying, “It is a crime, but that is why we’re standing here today. We are taking back the silence that’s been killing us.”

As claps and shouts were heard around Marquette, the rally at the post office ended with a song and dance.

Jaymie Depew can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 206. Her email address is jdepew@miningjournal.net.