Our lives shall not be sweated from birth until life closes

[sovay]

I've got only the one recording of "Bread and Roses." I am basically listening to it on repeat. There is a buttload of photographs under this cut, I am just warning you. There were a lot of things worth remembering yesterday.



Pussy hats assemble.



rushthatspeaks asked me to take a selfie. I had no idea how to take a selfie. I took a picture of them and Fox and they took this picture of me.



Mostly I photographed signs.













One of the pictures I am really pleased with.







The other picture I am really pleased with. Cartier-Bresson was with me.

















Representation matters.











Joe Quigley.









Hello, G.!













I completely failed to get a picture of Betsy Ross, but at least you can get an idea of the bubble machine this way (and one of the numerous NO DAPL signs).



It may be out of focus, but I am stupidly proud of catching this soap bubble.











And we got to the end of the route and the marchers had made a shrine.









Fox makes eye contact!



And on the way home on the Red Line, trying to get a picture of the sunset over the Charles, I got photobombed by a train.



Signs photographed by me but not pictured in this post include "We Cannot Succeed When Half of Us Are Held Back," "Protect What You Love" (with a photograph of the earth seen from space), "You Can Try to Divide, We Will Rise and Unify," "So Now We Fight for Equal Rights & Justice for All," "Healthcare for All: A Moral Imperative, An Achievable Goal" (with a heart reading "Obamacare"), "Strong Women Scare Weak Men," "Respect My Existence or Expect My Resistance," "Feminist" (held by a young white man), "Build Bridges Not Walls," "Hear Our Voice," "Equality, Diversity, Civil Rights, Activism, Religious Liberty, Freedom of Speech" (written over the colors of a rainbow flag), "Si, Se Puede," "If I Make My Uterus a Corporation, Will You Stop Regulating It?", "Never Again" (over the image of a coathanger), "A Woman's Place Is in the Resistance" (over a picture of Princess Leia), "Privileged White Woman Seeking Truth, Justice & Equality for All," "Watch My Back, I'm Under Attack—You Got My Back?" (held by a young black woman wearing a "Not My President" T-shirt), "I'm Not Accepting What I Cannot Change, I'm Changing What I Cannot Accept," "I'm With You," "I Really Hate That Man," "Intersectional Feminism or Bust," "Love One Another/Is the Answer," "South Asians Against Fascism," "You may shoot me with your words, you may cut me with your eyes, you may kill me with your hatefulness, but still, like air, I'll rise" (credited to Maya Angelou), "Grab Him by the Taxes," "Women's Rights: Human Rights," "The Good Old Days Sucked!", "United We Stand: Women & Men, Immigrants & Citizens, Straight & LGBTQ, Christians & Jews & Muslims & all Religions, Young & Old, Poor & Middle Class & Rich, People with and without Disabilities," "Diversity," "Greatness means equality and equality means no one gets left behind or forgotten" (with a hand-drawn adolescent Lilo and a belligerent-looking Stitch), "History Has Its Eyes on You," "LOVE trumps hate," "Racism Is Not Normal, Fraud Is Not Normal, Misogyny Is Not Normal," "The Flannel Brigade—Representin' VT," "Rebellions Are Built on Hope," "Love is love is love," "Trans Lives Matter," "Fight the 'Alt-Right'," "Love Is Love, Black Lives Matter, Climate Change Is Real, Immigrants Make America Great, Women's Rights Are Human Rights," "Diversity Makes America Great (Not Trump)," "Our Rights Are Not Up for Grabs. Neither Are We," "I Am Not Free While a Woman Is Unfree—We March in Solidarity," "Women Need Not Keep Their Mouths Shut and Their Uterus Open," "A Time for Moral Courage," "Feminism Is for Everyone," "Girls Just Wanna Have Fundamental Rights," "I Won't Stay Home," "Super Callous Fascist Racist Extra Braggadocious," "My Body, My Choice, My Rights, My Voice," "Love Not Hate," "He's a Bad Man," "Our Children Deserve Better," "5 6 7 8 Don't Assume Your Kids Are Straight," "Say Nyet to Trump," "I March for My Daughters" (held by someone whose gender I have no idea of), "Sushi Rolls Not Gender Roles," "Warning: We Are Syncing Our Periods," "My Arms Are Tired from Holding This Sign Since the 70's," "Hate Has No Room Here—Spread Love," "Thus says the Lord: Love One Another," and "More love is ok." I did not get a picture of the guy who had made a Trump abecedary, of which I remember only that G was for "Garbage-Fire" and Y for "Your Drunk Uncle." He was being mobbed by admirers, which was fair. There were many, many more signs I didn't photograph.

All photographs taken by me except where indicated. Please feel free to share so long as you credit me by name. Point me toward pictures of your own?

Comments

[jesse_the_k]

Exxxxxxcellent. Thank you so much for documenting the beginning.

[sovay]

Exxxxxxcellent. Thank you so much for documenting the beginning.

You are very welcome. I was glad my cousins had a camera I could use.

[davidgillon]

Great mix there, and some really good ones in this article: http://www.boredpanda.com/best-protest-signs-womens-march-washington-donald-trump/?media_id=685131

[sovay]

Great mix there, and some really good ones in this article

Thank you! I had seen some of those, but only heard about (or known nothing about) others. I really like the needlepoint.

[davidgillon]

The needlepoint is great, and I really liked the suffragettes* too.

*Seriously, Speelchucker? You have Suffragan, but not Suffragette?

[sovay]

Seriously, Speelchucker? You have Suffragan, but not Suffragette?

I don't even know "suffragan"! (It sounds like a brain med.) How does it feel about "suffragist"?

[davidgillon]

I don't even know "suffragan"!

Well, you have a reasonable excuse as it's a form of junior Catholic or Anglican bishop, working as assistant to a bishop or archbishop - I'm Catholic and I still had to remind myself of the specifics even if the name was vaguely familiar.

How does it feel about "suffragist"?

Similarly ignorant.

This is the spellchecker on my Kindle Fire, it's reliably strange.

[dhampyresa]

"If I Make My Uterus a Corporation, Will You Stop Regulating It?"
Damn.

[sovay]

Damn.

It was a full-body sandwich-board sign being worn by an older white woman (I am really, legitimately bad at ages—she looked what I now consider "slightly younger than my mother," meaning in her sixties) who looked totally done with having to state this sort of thing.

The woman walking next to her who looked like her daughter had another in green and orange that read "If You're Not Outraged, You're Not Paying Attention."

[rinue]

Thanks for the wonderful pictures! The train photobomb made me laugh right at the end when I wasn't expecting it.

[sovay]

Thanks for the wonderful pictures! The train photobomb made me laugh right at the end when I wasn't expecting it.

You're welcome!

It entertained everyone around me at the time, too.

[rydra_wong]

Thank you so much for the write-up and the photos!

[sovay]

Thank you so much for the write-up and the photos!

You're welcome!

[sartorias.livejournal.com]

So, so awesome--had to tweet this post. thank you!

[sovay]

So, so awesome--had to tweet this post. thank you!

You're very welcome. Thank you!

[gwynnega]

Wonderful photos! You know, I wouldn't put it past Mike Pence to like Nickelback.

I didn't end up making it to the Los Angeles march, but apparently 750,000 people did, which is pretty amazing.

[sovay]

Wonderful photos! You know, I wouldn't put it past Mike Pence to like Nickelback.

And they're not even American! For shame.

I didn't end up making it to the Los Angeles march, but apparently 750,000 people did, which is pretty amazing.

asakiyume pointed me toward some estimates of the numbers. It's incredible. I want this anger and this enthusiasm and this joy—because people looked happy to be marching—to be put to some effective end. I want this to be a real beginning.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

Love the intersectionality. My favorite of the ones you photographed is RƎΛO˥ution--that's great, wtih love in there backward.

Of the ones you've recorded in text, I like "Greatness means equality and equality means no one gets left behind or forgotten."

[sovay]

Love the intersectionality.

I was glad to see it. I don't want to belong to a movement that's a monolith. (a) I certainly won't feel at home in it (b) it won't be as effective as a movement that functions on multiple axes (c) on principle, seriously, what's the point?

My favorite of the ones you photographed is RƎΛO˥ution--that's great, wtih love in there backward

I'm really impressed you got that to work on a computer!

Of the ones you've recorded in text, I like "Greatness means equality and equality means no one gets left behind or forgotten."

I loved the range of material for signs, from Biblical quotations to pop culture to internet memes to longstanding slogans to personal expressions, some of them very plain, some highly decorated, all of them counting.

[teenybuffalo.livejournal.com]

Thanks for posting these. I didn't get to see more than a few of them myself.

My favorite of your photos: the one with the bidirectional traffic arrows above "Women Strong" and "Be The Church" and the cluster of three women where the middle woman is sitting down holding a sign saying "Roe V. Wade. I cannot believe we still have to protest this SAME SHIT."

Who's this marvelous Joe Quigley character and why have I never heard of him? I like his work and his opinions, going by a quick glance at his blog.

There was a dancing day-glo orange rhino handing out pamphlets that were either brilliant or nonsense; I'm not sure which. I'm not sure how long it lasted, however.

I'm glad you, Rush-That-Speaks and Fox all made it through the day OK.

[sovay]

Thanks for posting these. I didn't get to see more than a few of them myself.

I think the signs were constantly shifting as people left and new people arrived. The list nineweaving posted overlapped almost not at all with the signage I saw. (Some of the people she photographed were still there by the sides of the road when we came through.)

the cluster of three women where the middle woman is sitting down holding a sign saying "Roe V. Wade. I cannot believe we still have to protest this SAME SHIT."

The Fates have had it up to here.

Who's this marvelous Joe Quigley character and why have I never heard of him? I like his work and his opinions, going by a quick glance at his blog.

I don't know! I looked him up because of the quality of his art. He came all the way from Cape Cod and appears to be pretty cool.

There was a dancing day-glo orange rhino handing out pamphlets that were either brilliant or nonsense; I'm not sure which. I'm not sure how long it lasted, however.

That's great. It's not a protest without performance art.

I'm glad you, Rush-That-Speaks and Fox all made it through the day OK.

Thank you. You, too.

[juliansinger.livejournal.com]

I freakin' love your gay agenda & 'We Will Rise' pictures.

I like this metatextual version of the 'I can't believe I still have to protest this shit' sign

[sovay]

I freakin' love your gay agenda & 'We Will Rise' pictures.

Thank you.

I like this metatextual version of the 'I can't believe I still have to protest this shit' sign

Oh, that's great. Augh.

B&R

[lauradi7.livejournal.com]

My go-to Bread and Roses is from the Pride soundtrack.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=qpwNhfKjZJA
Tears every time. I expect the first time I heard it was Joan Baez, though

Re: B&R

[sovay]

My go-to Bread and Roses is from the Pride soundtrack.

That's the one I'm listening to!

I'll see if my mother has a version in her record collection by Joan Baez.

[yamamanama.livejournal.com]

Those are all amazing.

[sovay]

Those are all amazing.

Thank you. I'm glad I had access to a camera; I wanted a record.

[nineweaving.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I just got my march squared. Wonder what Fox made of it all?

Nine

[sovay]

Thank you!

You're welcome!

I just got my march squared. Wonder what Fox made of it all?

They did not like the noisy parts. Legit.

[shewhomust.livejournal.com]

Such great pictures! A day well spent...

[sovay]

Such great pictures! A day well spent...

Thank you! I think so.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Great photos!

I was at the NYC march, but didn't take any photos, and now I regret that. There were so many good signs and moments!

[sovay]

Great photos!

Thank you!

I was at the NYC march, but didn't take any photos, and now I regret that. There were so many good signs and moments!

Any you remember particularly fondly?

(I got lucky that my cousins had a camera: I had wanted to take pictures, but mine was dead as of the morning and wouldn't have had time to charge before I left the house. gaudior handed me theirs. I like the results!)

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

I saw a lot of the same ones you did! Which I find surprising – so many that I thought were original apparently are people sharing the same slogans. One I saw that you don't seem to have was "Boys will be boys good people".

[ada-hoffmann.livejournal.com]

I was reading all these slogans and I thought I was fine and then I got to the Maya Angelou one and was suddenly crying.

Thank you for marching.

[sovay]

Thank you for marching.

You are welcome.