NYPD officials estimated over 500,000 protesters flooded the streets of Midtown, heading toward President Donald J. Trump’s former residence, in peaceful participation in the Women’s March on New York.
The public event, organized by a professional project manager from Brooklyn named Katherine Siemionko who had raised over $40,000 for setup fees through a GoFundMe campaign, started at 11 a.m. at the Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, located near the United Nations’ headquarters at East 47th Street and 1st Avenue.
“I think it is important to march for our generation, for our future,” said Allie Rohletter, a 20-year-old Parsons student who was marching in the event. “And to never back down from what you believe.”
Predetermined start times, staggered by the names of registered organizations, groups, and attendees, were advertised through email, social media, and the march’s listing on the event-sharing website Eventbrite.
But by 2 p.m., the throng of marchers extended to the southwest side of Grand Central Terminal, nearest 42nd Street and 5th Avenue, in a calmly excited standstill.
The full Instagram Story video of my #WomensMarchNY live coverage for the @NSFreePress: pic.twitter.com/3Yw7quEGCr
— Molly Mintz (@mintzmolly) January 21, 2017
The Women’s March on New York was one of many planned demonstrations that occurred across the nation the day after the inauguration of the 45th president of the United States, whose racist, xenophobic, misogynistic, and otherwise inappropriate remarks have sparked outrage across the country. The New York Daily News estimated that 500,000 people also participated in the Women’s March on Washington, D.C.
Similar marches occurred in Los Angeles; Denver; Phoenix; Atlanta; and even London, England.
Despite its dramatic size, the event in America’s capital city was harmonious and nonviolent; the atmosphere in Manhattan was comparable.
Individuals walked slowly for hours, carrying creative homemade signs — one warning “Nasty women are watching you Drumpf” and others reading “Made in ‘Gina” — until organizers signaled the end of the protest at East 55th Street and 5th Avenue with megaphones. The march ended smoothly, as barricades and idle police officers safeguarding Trump Tower, looming two blocks ahead, prevented the crowd from directly reaching the building.
