Thousands take to streets in Women's March protests
Women across the United States and around the world took to the streets to protest against misogyny and the administration of President Donald Trump. The US march was, however, roiled by an anti-Semitism scandal.
Third Women's March
An estimated 100,000 people gathered in Washington, DC, to mark the anniversary of the first Women's March. That march, which took place the day after President Donald Trump's inauguration, is thought to have been the biggest protest in the United States since the Vietnam War. This year, many protesters once again donned pink and held banners protesting against Trump and sexual violence.
Marches all across the US
Marches also took place in other large US cities, including Los Angeles, San Francisco and Denver. Many marchers were angry at the recent confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. The confirmation was successful despite a woman's accusation that Kavanaugh had sexually assaulted her at a party while they were both in high school.
Protests around the world
Smaller marches also took place in many cities outside the United States, including Toronto, Berlin and Rome. In London, the march focused on the theme ''Bread and Roses." The phrase echoes Polish-American suffragette Rose Schneiderman, who said in 1911 that ''the worker must have bread but she must have roses too." She made the comment after a factory fire killed 146 female garment workers.
Anti-Semitism controversy
This year's march was clouded by an internal feud. In November, founder Teresa Shook accused two of the movement's leaders, Linda Sarsour and Tamika Mallory, of anti-Semitism. Sarsour, a Palestinian-American, is a vocal critic of Israel. Mallory has refused to distance herself from the Nation of Islam's anti-Semitic leader, Louis Farrakhan. Both women deny the accusation.
The Democrats' rising female star
Newly elected Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez participated in the march in her native New York City. AOC, as her fans call her, is the youngest woman ever to be elected to the House of Representatives. She has already established herself as a darling of the Democratic Party's left wing and nemesis of the Republican Party's right wing.